MILAN, March 31 (Reuters) - Italy's Ifil , a holding company led by the Agnelli family, said on Thursday it has raised its stake in Italy's number 3 bank Sanpaolo IMI by 1.54 percent to 4.99 percent.
Shares in Sanpaolo have risen this week to their highest levels in nearly three years amid speculation the bank could be a takeover target following parallel offers by Spain's BBVA and ABN AMRO of the Netherlands on two other Italian banks.