(Reuters) -Italian asset manager Azimut said on Thursday it had signed a binding agreement with domestic private equity fund FSI to create a fintech bank, spinning off a portion of its financial adviser network into the new entity.
The agreement enabled Azimut to update its 2025 net profit guidance, which now stands at 1 billion euros ($1.13 billion) on the assumption the new bank (TNB) receives authorization to operate in 2025.
Under the deal, Azimut will sell an 80.01% stake in TNB to FSI, pocketing around 240 million in cash at closing.
Azimut will retain a 19.99% stake in TNB.
The asset manager entered exclusive talks with FSI on the project in December, after first announcing the spin-off in March 2024.
The agreement also includes a long-term industrial partnership between Azimut and TNB, covering asset management, financial advisory and banking services.
Azimut said that its financial products distributed through TNB should generate at least 2.4 billion euros in net fees over the next 12 years.
($1 = 0.8878 euros)
(Reporting by Alberto Chiumento, editing by Valentina Za and Gavin Jones)
