Shareholders in Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena have voted to reinstate Luigi Lovaglio as chief executive officer, concluding a period of governance conflict at Italy's third-largest bank. The decision came at the lender's annual general meeting, where a board slate that included Lovaglio was put forward by minority shareholder PLT Holding.
Market reaction was modestly positive: shares in the bank rose 3% in Milan trading by 08:59 GMT on the day of the vote.
The PLT-backed slate won just under half of shareholder votes. The list supported by the departing board took roughly 39% of votes, while a third slate received about 7%. Approximately 65% of the bank's share capital was represented at the meeting.
The outcome returns Lovaglio, who previously led the bank for four years, to the CEO role. It also provides him with a fresh mandate to manage the integration of Mediobanca - a process he had designed prior to the governance dispute that culminated in his removal by the departing board ahead of the meeting, an action that led to termination of his contract.
In February, Lovaglio laid out a plan to merge Mediobanca's investment banking and wealth management operations with Monte dei Paschi's retail banking activities. That integration plan is central to the mandate he now resumes as CEO.
The outgoing board had put forward a rival leadership option in the form of Fabrizio Palermo, the chief executive of the Italian water utility Acea and a former head of the state investment agency Cassa Depositi e Prestiti. The departing board argued that the bank required leadership better suited to the specific challenges associated with integrating Mediobanca.
For the chairmanship, PLT nominated former UniCredit chair Cesare Bisoni. The departing board's list included the reappointment of incumbent chair Nicola Maione; following the vote Maione withdrew his candidacy.
Contextual note - The vote resolves a recent episode of governance instability at Monte dei Paschi and places the execution of the previously proposed Mediobanca integration back under Lovaglio's direction.
All figures and events reported here reflect the outcomes and statements made at the bank's annual general meeting and the details presented by the parties involved.