Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government wants a new director general at Italy’s Treasury in a crucial choice for economic policy and managing state-controlled entities, people familiar with the matter said.
(Bloomberg) — Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government wants a new director general at Italy’s Treasury in a crucial choice for economic policy and managing state-controlled entities, people familiar with the matter said.
Antonino Turicchi, who currently chairs airline ITA Airways, and Cristiano Cannarsa, chief executive officer of procurement company Consip SpA, are top runners to succeed Alessandro Rivera at the ministry, the people said.
The government is still deliberating on the matter, according to the people, who asked not to be named because discussions on the matter are private, and a final decision may be taken at a cabinet meeting Thursday. The deadline to confirm top administrative posts is Jan. 24.
A spokesperson for the finance ministry declined to comment on personnel choices.
The appointment is a pivotal one for Meloni, Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti, and her coalition. A position once held by former premier Mario Draghi, the Treasury job is one of the most high profile in Italy’s public administration, bringing with it a key role in coordinating policy domestically and internationally, and in managing company stakes.
That latter aspect will be all the more crucial in a year when the landscape of Italian state capitalism may be noticeably reshaped. A potential sale of ITA, the turnaround of former phone monopoly Telecom Italia SpA and the fate of Banca Monte Paschi di Siena SpA, the world oldest bank, all hang in the balance.
The director general role has previously proven a springboard to higher office. Aside from Draghi — who went on to lead the Bank of Italy, the European Central Bank and then Italy itself — former finance ministers Vittorio Grilli and Domenico Siniscalco also served in the job.
The Treasury appointment is among the highest-profile decisions in an initial round of personnel choices that will kick off a year of upheaval in the Italian administrative and economic elite.
The next step will be in the spring when the government must name chiefs for over 60 state-controlled companies. Meanwhile Bank of Italy Governor Ignazio Visco will conclude his term at the end of October, giving Meloni a further chance to leave her mark with his replacement.
Rivera was appointed in the top post in 2018 by the government led by Giuseppe Conte, a choice that was subsequently confirmed by Draghi when he took power at the helm of a technical administration in 2021.
(Updates with timing of the decision in third paragraph.)
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.