(Fortune) - The five children of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi are close to reaching an agreement over their father’s 7 billion-euro ($7.5 billion) business empire.
The heirs are set to accept Berlusconi’s will without so-called benefit of inventory, the newspaper Corriere della Sera reported on Saturday. That would speed up the process of distributing stakes in the holding firm Fininvest and the late billionaire’s collection of villas and yachts.
Berlusconi’s eldest children Marina and Pier Silvio were ceded an additional 20% of the family holding Fininvest under the terms of their father’s will, bringing their overall stake to 53% while younger daughters Barbara and Eleonora and younger son Luigi got the remainder. Marina Berlusconi was confirmed at the helm of Fininvest in June.
Fininvest controls MFE, Italy’s biggest commercial broadcaster. Formerly known as Mediaset, MFE dominates the market for TV advertising in Italy, with more than a 40% share. Back in the 1990s it was the launchpad for Berlusconi’s political ambitions.
Fininvest also has 53.3% of publisher Arnoldo Mondadori Editore SpA, a minority stake in financial services provider Banca Mediolanum SpA, and owns football club AC Monza.
Beyond the business holdings there are Berlusconi’s luxury properties, were he often hosted meetings with political allies and heads of states as founder of the Forza Italia party and during his stints as prime minister.
Corriere estimates the overall value of Berlusconi’s villas at 600 million to 700 million euros, including Villa San Martino in Arcore, near Milan, and Villa Certosa in Sardinia. Marina and Pier Silvio Berlusconi are each poised to get both about 30% of the real estate holding Dolcedrago, while Barbara, Eleonora and Luigi receive about 13% each, Corriere reported.
Fininvest declined to comment to Bloomberg.
By Antonio Vanuzzo | Bloomberg
September 9, 2023
