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UPDATE 1-Banks agree to finance Autostrade takeover-holder

(Recasts story with relative size of takeover, other details throughout)

By Svetlana Kovalyova

MILAN, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Italian holding company Schemaventotto said banks agreed on Monday to finance its full takeover bid for the country's major toll-road operator, Autostrade , the biggest takeover in Italy in recent years.

Schemaventotto, which is controlled by the Benetton family, last month offered about 8 billion euros ($8.21 billion) or 9.5 euros per share, for a takeover of the 70 percent of Autostrade that it does not already hold.

Autostrade's current market capitalisation is about 11 billion euros.

Schemaventotto said in a statement it had reached an agreement to create a banking syndicate, coordinated by investment bank Mediobanca and UBM, an investment arm of bank UniCredito , to finance the offer.

It did not say which banks would participate in the pool and how much money they were prepared to disburse for the deal -- the second largest in Italian history after Olivetti's 31-billion-euro takeover for Telecom Italia in 1999.

Worries that Schemaventotto may fail to secure a loan -- estimated by financial sources at about 9.2 billion euros including investments -- and postpone the bid helped push Autostrade shares down about 2.4 percent over the past month.

Autostrade shares closed up 0.23 of a euro at 9.34 euros, below the takeover price.

Schemaventotto said the takeover bid would run from January to February if the stock market regulator Consob approved the offer. The company said it planned to publish takeover details in the next few days.

In November, Schemaventotto said it would present the takeover to Consob by December and the bid would run from late December to the end of January. A delay in publication of the document raised concerns that the deal ran into troubles.

Some northern Italian investors had been reported to be preparing a counterbid for Autostrade, but analysts have said it would be tough for them to match the Benettons' financial firepower.

Autostrade in a separate statement earlier on Monday offered another sweetener to investors saying it would hike tariffs by 1.52 percent as of the start of next year if a government committee approves the move later this week.