Comunicazione n. 0045269 dell’11 maggio 2023 – Quesito confermativo in merito all’insussistenza dell’obbligo di promuovere un’offerta pubblica di acquisto obbligatoria, ai sensi dell’art. 106, comma 3, lett. a), del Tuf e dell’art. 45 del Regolamento Emittenti, sulle azioni di […società C…], a seguito dello scioglimento di […società A…] e della conseguente variazione del numero dei soci di […società B…], che controlla […società C…] Data di pubblicazione: 15/05/2023 Data di adozione: 11/05/2023

In Communication No. 0045269/23 of 11 May 2023, Consob provided clarifications regarding the „cascade“ OPA in Italy.
The communication specifically addresses the correct interpretation of Article 45 of the Issuers‘ Regulation (Regolamento Emittenti) concerning Indirect Acquisition. According to Article 45, when an acquirer obtains a stake that enables them to exceed the voting rights thresholds specified in Article 106 of the TUF for a listed company or to control an unlisted company, they are required to make a public offer if the acquirer – indirectly or through the aggregation of direct and indirect holdings – holds a stake exceeding the aforementioned thresholds.
The communication focuses on the scenario where a party acquires control of an unlisted company, specifically a non-listed holding company.
In this regard, Consob states in the communication that there is no obligation for a listed company in which a non-listed holding company has a stake to launch a „cascade“ mandatory tender offer if, as a result of the dissolution and liquidation of the assets of a shareholder company of the same holding company, there is no change in the control structure of the holding company due to specific statutory provisions that limit the position of the majority shareholder of the holding company.