The Italian state entity that took on soured debt from two failed Venetian banks is seeking partners to help restructure companies struggling to repay 9 billion euros ($11 billion) of loans, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The collapse of Banca Popolare di Vicenza and Veneto Banca left tens of thousands of small businesses in the northern Veneto region without access to financing. They owe billions of euros in loans classed as unlikely to pay that were taken on by state-owned SGA SpA after the lenders imploded last year. Unlikely-to-pay debt, or UTP, refers to loans to borrowers that are still solvent but unlikely to meet their obligations in full.