Pirelli rejects Italy minister’s ‘bad loan’ allegation

Milan, Italy – Pirelli C. & SpA has rejected claims that it has contributed to an ongoing crisis within Italy’s Banca Carige bank.

In a 1 Feb statement, Pirelli said it had “always honoured its debts” and never “received favours of a political nature”.

The statement came in response to comments by Luigi Di Maio, the Italian deputy premier and minister for economic development and labour, who named a number of companies allegedly responsible for “bad loans” at Banca Carige.

The Italian minister, in an address to the Italian parliament on 1 Feb, said the bank had been taking high-risk decisions.

Among such decisions, the minister said, was granting loan to estate management company Prelios, which was formerly known as Pirelli & C. Real Estate SpA.

In its statement 1 Feb, the Milan-based tire maker said Prelios had not been under its control since October 2010 and that Pirelli was not a shareholder within the company.

Prelios, said Pirelli, ‘appears to have received financing from a pool of banks, including Carige, and obtained over time a normal extension of the line of credit.’