Intesa Sanpaolo acquired a stake in Nexi as part of the deal to sell its payment business to Nexi. Credit: Riccardo Tuninato on Unsplash.

Italian banking group Intesa Sanpaolo has sold its 5.1% stake in payment firm Nexi in a deal valued at €584m.

The bank sold some 67 million ordinary shares through an accelerated book-building procedure at a price of €8.7 per share.

Only qualified Italian and foreign institutional investors could participate in the share sale, which marks Intesa Sanpaolo’s exit from Nexi.

In December 2019, Intesa Sanpaolo agreed to sell its retailers’ payment business to Nexi for €1bn.

As part of the deal, the Italian bank acquired a 9.9% stake in Nexi for €653m from the payment firm’s shareholder Mercury UK HoldCo.

The earlier deal also included a long-term partnership between Nexi and Intesa Sanpaolo.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData

Tick here to opt out of curated industry news, reports, and event updates from Retail Banker International.

Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

Announcing the sale, the bank said: “The sale described herein has no impact on Intesa Sanpaolo’s long-standing strategic partnership with Nexi, which has recently been extended outside of Italy.”

The entities are in the process of securing an extension for the agreement to Croatia, the bank said.

Intesa Sanpaolo’s stake in Nexi shrunk following the payment firm’s merger deals with Nets and local peer SIA.

The mergers saw Nexi issue shares to the acquired firm’s shareholders from its share capital.

The development comes after a surge in Nexi’s share prices due to stronger-than-expected quarterly results, Reuters reported.

However, according to Refinitiv, Nexi shares are still down by 30% on a year-to-date basis.

BofA Securities and JPMorgan along with Intesa Sanpaolo’s investment banking arm acted as joint book-runners for the transaction.