MILAN (Reuters) -Leading governance adviser Glass Lewis on Wednesday confirmed its recommendation to Mediobanca shareholders for a vote in favour of the bid to acquire private bank Banca Generali, a document showed.
The vote to be held on Aug. 21 had initially been scheduled for June 16. It was postponed as the proposal risked lacking sufficient support due to friction between the Italian merchant bank’s top management and some of its leading investors.
“We continue to believe that Mediobanca shareholders should support the company’s proposal,” Glass Lewis wrote in a report seen by Reuters.
“We find no reason to amend our prior recommendation at this time,” it added.
Rival proxy adviser Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) last week also reiterated its recommendation for a “yes” vote.
Mediobanca in April unveiled its plan to buy Banca Generali and create Italy’s second-largest wealth manager, as it seeks to thwart a takeover bid from Monte dei Paschi di Siena.
The takeover attempt, one of a dozen M&A deals reshaping Italian banking, has opened up a battlefront between Mediobanca CEO Alberto Nagel and two top domestic shareholders who have recently also become the main investors in Monte dei Paschi.
(Reporting by Valentina Za, editing by Gavin Jones)
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