Italy asks Poste, state mint to revive talks over PagoPA deal

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By Elvira Pollina and Giuseppe Fonte

MILAN (Reuters) -Italy wants state-backed Poste Italiane and the state mint to revive talks to buy PagoPA, the Treasury-owned platform that handles digital payments to the public administration, two sources familiar with the matter said.

Under a plan drafted last year, Poste – which has expanded beyond its core mail and parcels business into financial, broadband and energy supply services – would take a minority stake in PagoPA to bolster its payments business.

But negotiations hit a snag over the valuation of PagoPA, with Poste and the mint questioning a price tag of 500 million euros ($581 million) determined by a Treasury adviser, Reuters reported in April.

According to one of the sources, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, the parties are now seeking to finalise a deal in September, although no formal deadline has been set.

PagoPA, which this year has handled payments to Italy’s public administration worth 57 billion euros, is set to play a leading role in the Italian government’s efforts to set up a digital wallet through the IO mobile app.

The app enables Italians to store official documents, including proof of their digital identity to access public services online, and to make payments.

The prospect of Poste taking a stake in PagoPA has alarmed Italy’s crowded banking sector, which is grappling with strong competition in digital payments from the likes of Apple, Google owner Alphabet and PayPal.

For its part, Poste is concerned that part of its business might be dented by PagoPA’s plan to develop the so-called SEND project, a digital platform for public administrations to send and receive legal notices, a source close to the matter said.

($1 = 0.8607 euros)

(Reporting by Elvira Pollina in Milan and Giuseppe Fonte in Rome. Editing by Mark Potter)