UniCredit turned to Delfin to hike Generali stake but no deal, paper says

ROME, June 18 (Reuters) - Italy's second-largest bank UniCredit has sounded out Delfin, the holding company of the Del Vecchio business dynasty, to more than double its stake in insurer Generali to just under 20%, daily Il Sole 24 Ore reported on Thursday.

Delfin turned down the proposal, which was put forward by UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel's team shortly after Intesa Sanpaolo tabled a €30.6 billion ($35.23 billion) cash-and-share offer to buy Monte dei Paschi di Siena and become the biggest investor in Generali.

Delfin declined a Reuters request for comment. UniCredit could not immediately be reached for comment.

Generali is the country's biggest insurer and a prized asset in Italian finance. Reuters reported in January that UniCredit was interested in Delfin's stake in the company.

When a raft of banking M&A deals in Italy last year began to affect Generali's shareholder base, raising doubts about who its future owners would be, UniCredit built a near 9% stake, which it has described as a financial investment.

Though Orcel repeatedly said UniCredit would reduce its net Generali exposure, the bank actually grew the stake while also increasing the derivatives hedging.

Under the plan reported by Il Sole, sources said UniCredit would buy Delfin's 10% stake in Generali in exchange for 5% of its own shares, with no cash component involved.

Delfin - the holding company of the Del Vecchios, the family behind the EssilorLuxottica luxury eyewear empire - is already a long-standing UniCredit shareholder. It would have seen its stake rise to 8% with the swap, becoming the bank's largest investor.

The proposal, however, was rejected by the Luxembourg-based holding over the financial terms, the report said, adding it is not clear whether talks ended or were only temporarily suspended.

UniCredit shares are trading near record highs, making the swap unappealing for Delfin, Il Sole said. The Del Vecchio family's holding company is also in the midst of an internal ownership reshuffle and needs a cash payment for its assets.

($1 = 0.8685 euros)

(Reporting by Alvise Armellini and Valentina Za; Editing by Giulia Segreti and Joe Bavier)