Generali won't fight government over Natixis deal, CEO tells paper

By Gianluca Semeraro, Giuseppe Fonte and Valentina Za

MILAN (Reuters) -Italian insurer Generali will not put up a fight to defend a planned asset management tie-up, if Rome's opposition stiffens once a government review of the deal starts, CEO Philippe Donnet said in a newspaper interview.

Donnet's comments came as an April 24 shareholder vote approaches to hand him another term as CEO of Generali and appoint a new board that will take the final decision on the transaction.

Generali in January signed a non-binding accord with French bank BPCE to combine their units, Generali Investments and Natixis Investment Managers, to create Europe's biggest asset manager by revenue.

The move irked two leading Generali shareholders who have long challenged Donnet's leadership, but it also raised concerns in Rome about the new entity's investment choices. 

Tasked with finding buyers for Italy's 3 trillion euro ($3.3 trillion) debt, the conservative government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has repeatedly said Italians' savings must be invested domestically.

"We do not intend to lock horns with the government," Donnet told Friday's Corriere della Sera newspaper.

The backlash against the deal, amid shareholder tensions at Generali, had stoked doubts in recent weeks among bankers and people close to government circles about its chances of being finalised.

Three people close to the matter told Reuters Donnet may decide to ditch the accord altogether if unable to overcome Rome's reservations.

He told Corriere that Generali would keep a constructive relationship with the government regardless of the outcome of the April 24 vote.

Friction between the insurer's main investor - and Donnet supporter - Mediobanca, and the second and third-largest shareholders has raised risks of a fractured board.

With a recently acquired 4.2% Generali stake, UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel could play a role. Donnet said he had met with Orcel, adding the two groups may widen partnerships they have in Eastern Europe.

The government is yet to start the deal's review under a special power framework designed to protect key domestic assets from unwanted interest.

Donnet reiterated that the review would allow Generali to dispel concerns.

"On the other hand, if during the process further actual reservations, or lack of proper understanding, on the government's part emerged, the board certainly couldn't ignore that," he said.

To assuage Italy's concerns, the accord keeps the assets' ownership separate from their management. The distinction, however, threads a fine line.

In a further conciliatory message to the government, Donnet last month said Generali could step up its purchases of Italian debt.

($1 = 0.9093 euros)

(Additional reporting by Alvise Armellini; editing by Giulia Segreti, Tomasz Janowski and Louise Heavens)