Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 5, 2026
2 min readLast updated: February 5, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleBPER Banca exceeded revenue forecasts and is finalizing a merger with Banca Popolare di Sondrio, with a shareholder meeting set for March 12.
Feb 5 (Reuters) - Italy's fourth-largest bank BPER on Thursday reported 2025 revenue that exceeded its expectations, as it closed in on the acquisition of regional peer Banca Popolare di Sondrio.
Modena-based BPER completed a 5.4 billion euro ($6.36 billion) cash-and-share bid for Pop Sondrio in July, a move aimed at strengthening its position amid a wave of consolidation in Italy's banking sector.
BPER shares were 2.6% higher in late morning trading, with analysts welcoming the bank’s results and highlighting the strength of its revenue performance.
BPER reiterated that it expected to finalise the merger by the end of April, while the Sondrio-based lender has called a shareholders' meeting for March 12 to approve the planned takeover.
Full-year total revenue came in at 6.6 billion euros, above BPER's updated guidance of 6.4 billion euros provided in November to include Pop Sondrio's contribution.
Fourth-quarter net profit was 346 million euros, while net interest income (NII) grew 3.6% year-on-year, driven by the positive effect of interest rates.
BPER said it would propose an overall cash dividend of 0.65 euros per share, representing a payout ratio of 75%.
"If the bank continues, as I believe, to have such a strong organic capital generation, which might also be accelerated by the full integration of Popolare Sondrio, then we might revise the payout ratio", CEO Gianni Franco Papa told analysts during the post-earnings conference call.
He added that BPER plans to update its strategy in the second half of the year once the integration is complete.
($1 = 0.8482 euros)
(Reporting by Andrea Mandalà in Milan, Enrico Sciacovelli in Gdansk, editing by Gianluca Semeraro, Kirsten Donovan)
Revenue is the total income generated by a company from its business activities, typically from the sale of goods and services, before any expenses are deducted.
A merger is a business combination where two companies join to form a single entity, often to enhance competitiveness and market share.
A dividend is a portion of a company's earnings distributed to its shareholders, typically in cash or additional shares, as a reward for their investment.
The payout ratio is the percentage of earnings distributed to shareholders as dividends, indicating how much profit is returned to investors versus reinvested in the company.
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