By Giovanni Legorano
MILAN-- UniCredit SpA Chief Executive Federico Ghizzoni said
Thursday that the bank's board approved a plan to create a fund
that will finance a set of companies under restructuring of which
UniCredit is a creditor.
The bank will contribute up to EUR2 billion for the moment to
this vehicle which will be set up in partnership with its Italian
peer Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, private equity giant KKR & Co. and
consultant Alvarez and Marsal.
"The objective is to support these companies' growth, through
investments in their equity," Mr. Ghizzoni said. He said the
platform will be open to other investors.
Mr. Ghizzoni also said that the investment approach of this
vehicle will be different from that of private-equity funds. "The
investment horizon will be longer and the expected return higher,"
Mr. Ghizzoni said.
Write to Giovanni Legorano at giovanni.legorano@wsj.com
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