Intesa criticises C.Agricole in antitrust memo -paper

MILAN, July 7 (Reuters) - Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo SpA (ISP.MI) has accused Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA) of not observing antitrust requirements in a document sent to Italy's antitrust authority, according to La Stampa newspaper on Tuesday.

A senior official of the regulator said the 50-page document would be examined as part of its probe into a pact between Intesa shareholders Credit Agricole, of France, and Italian insurer Assicurazioni Generali SpA (GASI.MI).

Intesa "has sent a detailed memorandum of about 50 pages. We are examining it", the head of the regulator's banks division Giovanni Calabro said on Tuesday, cited by Italian news agency Ansa, without detailing the memo's contents.

On Tuesday, La Stampa daily said that in the 48-page memorandum Intesa defends its own conduct but says it is not responsible for the French bank's behaviour in not meeting antitrust requirements imposed in 2006.

The regulator imposed the conditions in 2006 when it cleared the setting up of Intesa Sanpaolo and to ensure competition between Intesa and Credit Agricole in Italy.

The memo recalls that Credit Agricole had said it would meet 2006 antitrust conditions including to sell down its 5.8 percent stake to under 5 percent by Jan. 1, 2008, and to under 2 percent by end-2009, the paper said on Tuesday.

Intesa declined to comment on Tuesday.

A source close to the matter confirmed that the memo made a full reconstruction of the commitments made at the time of the merger and how they had been carried out, but declined specific comment on Credit Agricole's role.

Previously Intesa has said it hoped a solution would be found to the dispute with the regulator over Credit Agricole and Generali's plan to pursue a joint strategy with their combined 10.8 percent stake in Intesa.

On Monday, its Chief Executive Corrado Passera said: "A solution will be found that is good for the shareholders and does not create problems for the group."

Other foundation shareholders in Intesa have been critical of Credit Agricole for breaching requirements set by the regulator in 2006 for the French bank not to set up share pacts and to sell down its stake.

According to La Stampa, the memorandum was filed last Friday, the same day the regulator extended its probe, launched in May, into the Generali-Credit Agricole pact.

The probe extension is looking at the second watered-down version of the two shareholders' pact, which still fails to meet antitrust requirements aimed at ensuring Intesa and Credit Agricole compete on the Italian market.

Intesa has 30 days in which to file observations on the antitrust rejection of Generali-Credit Agricole's latest pact while the overall inquiry is due to run to Oct. 11.

Credit Agricole declined to comment. (Reporting by Nigel Tutt and Gianluca Semeraro, editing by Will Waterman)