UniCredit Drops BPM Takeover Bid Amid Government Opposition

UniCredit SpA dropped its bid for rival Banco BPM SpA, ending an eight-month standoff with its rival and the Italian government over the plan to create the country’s largest lender.

The bank’s board decided to withdraw the offer for Banco BPM because it effectively couldn’t secure government authorization, it said in a statement late Tuesday. UniCredit said that while progress had been made in talks with authorities, a definitive resolution would have gone beyond even the extended offer period.