Overview
- On Sunday at the Forum Ambrosetti in Cernobbio Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio openly accused CEO Francesco Milleri of acting alone on major deals and mocked the idea by saying Delfin would be called “Millfin” if that continued.
- Del Vecchio demanded direct dialogue among Delfin shareholders and said the board must return to implementing the strategy set by the majority of owners rather than making unilateral choices.
- He said shareholders were not consulted about Intesa Sanpaolo’s offer for Monte dei Paschi di Siena and insisted Delfin must seek owner approval before taking positions in bank consolidation plans.
- Del Vecchio stressed that EssilorLuxottica must be the group’s priority, citing a roughly 50% fall in its share price and highlighting the welfare of the company’s about 250,000 employees.
- He signalled readiness to change his personal stake or even exit EssilorLuxottica to help build a decisive shareholder bloc and said he has previously been prepared to use large leverage to resolve the family succession; the board and other heirs have not yet formally responded.