ECB's Nouy says Monte Paschi solvent as rescue expected

[March 27, 2017]  FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena is solvent <BMPS.MI> and is in the final stages of discussing its rescue plan with European authorities, the European Central Bank's top supervisor, Daniele Nouy, told Reuters on Monday.

Daniele Nouy, chair of the Supervisory Board of the European Central Bank, attends the 2016 Institute of International Finance (IIF) Spring Membership meeting in Madrid, Spain May 24, 2016. REUTERS/Susana Vera

Monte Paschi said last week the ECB had completed an inspection of its loans and this would be taken into account when assessing its solvency, the key pre-condition for getting state-aid.

Asked whether the troubled Tuscan lender was still solvent, nearly three months after it asked for a 'precautionary recapitalization' by the Italian state, Nouy said:

"Yes, otherwise we wouldn’t be discussing about the precautionary recapitalization.

"We are at later stages of the discussion with the Commission."

Speaking at a press conference earlier, Nouy said she expected the European Commission to make a decision on Monte Paschi soon.

(Reporting By Francesco Canepa)

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