Poste Italiane Launches Bid to Delist Telecom Italia
Poste Italiane, Italy’s largest service infrastructure provider, has announced a total purchase and exchange offer for Telecom Italia (TIM) shares, aiming for a full delisting of the telecommunications company from the Italian stock exchange. The move follows Poste Italiane’s existing 27 percent stake in TIM and represents a significant consolidation in the Italian telecommunications market.
Details of the Offer
The offer involves a combination of Poste Italiane shares and cash. Specifically, for every 5,000 TIM shares tendered, shareholders will receive 109 Poste Italiane shares and a cash payment of €835. This equates to a cash component of €0.167 per TIM share and a securities component of 0.0218 newly issued Poste Italiane ordinary shares.
The offer represents a premium of 9.01% compared to TIM’s stock market value as of March 20, 2026, valuing each TIM share at €0.635. Poste Italiane has approved a capital increase to issue the new shares required for the exchange offer.
Financial Implications and Ownership Structure
The total cost of the acquisition for Poste Italiane is estimated at €2.8 billion, assuming 100% acceptance of the offer. If fully accepted, TIM shareholders would collectively hold approximately 22% of Poste Italiane’s capital.
This transaction will impact the Italian government’s ownership stake in Poste Italiane. Currently, the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) hold a combined 65% stake. Acceptance of the offer is expected to reduce the state’s holding to around 51%, with the MEF’s stake decreasing from 29% to 13% and the CDP’s stake falling from 35% to 28%.
Synergies and Future Outlook
Poste Italiane anticipates potential pre-tax synergies of approximately €700 million per year once the integration is complete, with €500 million stemming from cost synergies and over €200 million from revenue synergies. One-time costs associated with the operation are estimated at €700 million. The company expects a positive impact on earnings per share starting in 2027.
The combined Poste Italiane-TIM group is projected to have revenues of €26.9 billion and a workforce of 150,000 employees, positioning it as a major integrated platform in Italy. The group’s capitalization is expected to exceed €30 billion, with a free float of approximately €15 billion.
Antitrust Approval
The acquisition has received unconditional approval from the Italian Antitrust Authority, following a similar green light from AGCOM. The authority determined that the transaction would not significantly impede competition in the relevant markets. StartMag reports that the authority too dismissed concerns that TIM’s access to Poste Italiane’s branch network would strengthen its market position.
Poste Italiane is currently led by CEO Matteo Del Fante and Chairwoman Silvia Maria Rovere, with Giuseppe Lasco serving as General Manager.