(Bloomberg) -- A consortium of investors is mulling the potential purchase of Vivendi’s stake in Telecom Italia, Corriere della Sera reported on Saturday, citing sources it didn’t identify.
The reported group would include Andrea Pezzi, a former Vivendi consultant in Italy, and Claudio Costamagna, the former president of state lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti. Both denied the report when contacted by Corriere, the newspaper said.
The move would require approval from the government in Rome, which with its “golden power” prerogative has the ability to probe takeovers of any company with a strategic role, such as telecoms. The government didn’t respond to a request for comment from Bloomberg News.
The deal would also face the hurdle of Vivendi’s agreement, the newspaper said. Corriere added the project was still in an “embryonic” stage and that the consortium has reached out to France’s Tikehau Capital SCA, which denied the plan to the newspaper. The newspaper also cites an overture to US-based Blackstone, but the result of those discussions wasn’t clear, it added.
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