MILAN, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Italian bank Sanpaolo IMI does not plan a full takeover bid for its unit Banca Fideuram, Sanpaolo's head was quoted as saying on Saturday, responding to a market talk that hit Fideuram shares in November.
Shares in Fideuram, 73-percent owned by Sanpaolo, have lost some nine percent since mid-November, on rumours that the Turin-based bank could take over Fideuram, merge it with peer Mediolanum , or take over Fideuram's fund management activities while concentrating insurance business in the unit.
"We have excluded the possibility of buy back or buying 100 percent in any form," Sanpaolo Chairman Rainer Masera told Borsa e Finanza financial weekly in an interview, when asked if Fideuram could be sacrificed under the group's planned revamp.
Maserra confirmed that Sanpaolo would rationalise its complex structure and said the transfer of Fideuram's fund management business to the parent bank was one of many possibilities under consideration.
"We have not yet made any decisions and we are ready to evaluate all the options that create value, also for the minority shareholders," Masera said.
He said Sanpaolo, one of Fiat's main creditor banks, would like to see results of the industrial group's recovery plan before making decisions about the possibility to change terms of a three-billion euro loan extended in 2002.
Some Italian newspapers have speculated recently that Fiat and its creditors might discuss pushing back the 2005 expiry of the loan, which is convertible into shares if Fiat cannot repay the money and continues to fall short of debt-related targets.
Eight banks threw Fiat the lifeline as it struggled through its worst ever crisis last year. Since then Fiat had launched a restructuring plan aimed at pulling it back to operating breakeven in 2004.
"The convertible loan is an agreement which has definite terms and expiry. From our point of view there are no financial problems today. Let's think about industry first, then we will see," Masera said.
Earlier this week, chief executives of two other major Fiat's creditor banks, Intesa and UniCredito said chaning the loan terms was not under discussion.