UniCredit's board set to pick new directors on Wednesday

MILAN: UniCredit is set to finalise a list of new directors on Wednesday which shareholders will vote on when they meet on April 15 to name a new board, two people familiar with the matter said.

The list of candidates includes new Chief Executive Andrea Orcel, who was picked in January to replace Jean Pierre Mustier as head of Italy's second biggest bank.

Mustier stepped down on Feb. 11 after clashing with the board over strategy late last year. UniCredit has named Co-Chief Operating Officer Ranieri de Marchis as general manager pending Orcel's arrival.

The sources said UniCredit was looking to bring in new directors with expertise in international banking and the digital transformation facing the financial sector, but no major overhaul of the board was expected.

One seat that will need to be filled is that currently taken by former Bank of America banker Diego De Giorgi, who has joined Mustier in setting up a special purpose acquisition vehicle to invest in European financial companies.

The list will also include current Chairman-elect Pier Carlo Padoan, an Italian economist and former Treasury chief, who will replace Cesare Bisoni.

UniCredit is expected to shift its strategy as it seeks to boost returns for shareholders after years of restructuring under Mustier, who sold off billions of euros of assets to rebuild the bank's capital buffers.

Padoan has said UniCredit will consider external growth among options as Italy's banking sector consolidates.

Orcel's track record as one of Europe's most experienced dealmakers is also intensifying expectations that UniCredit will engage in mergers and acquisitions in a break with Mustier's "no M&A" stance.

UniCredit has come under pressure from the Treasury to take on rival Monte dei Paschi, sources have said.