Arca sgr, an asset management company 90% owned by Bper and Banca Popolare di Sondrio, returns to attract interest by private equity firms. According to Il Sole 24 Ore, on the table of the two majority shareholders Bper (57.06%) and Banca Popolare di Sondrio (36.83%) in fact landed expressions of interest by some funds. At the moment formal negotiations are not in progress, but could be started in the coming weeks, in order to close the assessments by the beginning of 2020. Arca sgr at the end of September had 31.8 billion in assets under management.
In recent months, Bper and Banca Popolare di Sondrio had started with the advisor McKinsey a process to evaluate strategic options for Arca sgr, from which three hypotheses emerged: a market listing, an integration with an industrial partner or the opening of capital to a new subject as a fund. The latter should be the chosen option; the hypothesis of a direct sale was also rejected because the two institutions would remain linked to the sgr through long-term distribution agreements.
It is not the first time that the funds have come forward for Arca sgr. In July 2018 they had already submitted offers for about 40% of the company then in the hands of Banca Popolare di Vicenza and Veneto Banca (see here a previous article by BeBeez), but then their stakes weretaken over by Bper and Banca Popolare of Sondrio. Before that, at the beginning of November 2015, the US fund Atlas Merchant Capital presented to the shareholder banks an offer to take over the majority of the company, which had been even valued one billion euros. Subsequently, US Centerbridge fund and the Italian listed competitor Anima Holding had also come forward, followed by the French Amundi (Credit Agricole group) and Ardian (see here a previous article by BeBeez).
