EuropeFinance and Insurance

Unicredit rules out quitting shipping

Italy’s Unicredit will not exit the shipping industry its ceo, Jean Pierre Mustier, said yesterday in London while outlining a restructuring plan.

The Frenchman at the helm of the bank said that Unicredit will focus on organic growth and does not plan further acquisitions.

According to Bloomberg he also added that the company’s German unit, formerly Hypovereinsbank, is a strategic asset in a country that is core to the bank, adding that he also isn’t looking to sell the company’s shipping business or other major operations.

This affirmations contradict the rumours reported by some media regarding a possible withdrawal of the Italian bank from the list of lenders active in the shipping industry, carried on through a dedicated desk based in Hamburg.

Unicredit plans to raise €13bn ($13.8bn) in a rights offer and part of the funds the bank is raising will cover losses from disposals of bad loans. The Milan-based bank said it will set aside €8.1bn for non-performing loans as it plans to move €17.7bn of soured debt off its books for securitisation and a subsequent sale. Some of them may probably be shipping-related loans. Fortress Investment Group and Pimco will take majority stakes in the two units that will take on the non-performing loans, Unicredit said.

 

 

 

Nicola Capuzzo

Nicola is a highly qualified journalist focused on transport economics, logistics and shipping with broad experience in both online and printed media. Specialties: shipping, ship finance, banking, commodities and port economics. He regularly interviews Europe's top shipowner executives for Maritime CEO magazine.
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