Tim, stop the remuneration of managers: here’s what happened

MILAN – The remuneration policy for managers, including that of CEO Pietro Labriola, does not pass. Both candidates rejected to take the seat on the board vacated by the outgoing Arnaud de Puyfontaine. Tim’s shareholders, starting with the main Vivendi (23.75% of the capital) decisive with his abstention, from the meeting send clear signals of intolerance to the top of the company. And this happens in the aftermath of the relaunch of the offers for the former monopolist’s network, which caused a collapse of the stock on Monday (-8.3%) and in the middle of the session the shares continue to suffer, dropping by more than two percentage points.

As it will be recalled, the consortium formed by Cassa depositi e prestiti as well as by the Australian Macquarie fund raised its offer from 18 to 19.3 billion, while the rivals of Kkr pushed the offer from 18 to 19 billion to which one could add two billion in the event of a merger with Open Fiber (one billion is linked to the possible granting of Rab by the government). All offers are therefore below 20 billion, in a situation that disappoints Vivendi (which values ​​the infrastructure at 31 billion), the board of directors (which calculated the acceptance area as between 22 and 24 billion) and consequently the market, which sees a more distant solution to the debt issue that continues to mortgage Tim’s future.

The shareholders’ meeting, which approved the 2022 budget, thus saw the board’s proposals succumb, saw the participation – through the designated representative – of 53% of the capital and 45% (Vivendi) abstained when it came to to vote on the points relating to the remuneration of managers. Not even the candidates to take over the board from de Puyfontaine or Paola Bruno, proposed by the committee of managers (the funds), and Franco Lombardi, president of Asati, the association that brings together small shareholders, mostly employees, did not pass.

Now the wait is concentrated for May 4, when – on the basis of the preliminary investigation by the related parties committee – the board will examine the new proposals for the network and will be called to decide on what to do: investigate one or both of them, or study the feasibility of other roads. Which is what Vivendi has been asking for some time, more inclined to support an operation, a takeover bid by funds, which takes Telecom out of the Stock Exchange and thus allows the proportional division of the network. The risk is that in the end a substantial capital increase or the sale of an important asset such as Brazil may be needed. In short, everything that has so far been excluded from society.