Italy’s MPS in race against time
Italy’s Banca Montedei Paschi di Siena (MPS) faces a race against time to secure regulators’ support for its €1bn bond sale. It faces a capital shortfall of €3.3bn, of which it has filled roughly two thirds. Italian banks are doing better than those in Spain due to limited retail exposure, but MPS is heavily exposed to Italian government debt. MPS is the world’s oldest bank but it could be the first to seek government help since 2010, when the government underwrote new bonds.