On 22 December, the fate of the Italian bank Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena (BMPS) was reasonably uncertain, after announcing the day before that its voluntary conversion of bonds into shares had allowed it to collect slightly more than €2 billion, when it was supposed to raise €5 billion in private funds before the end of the month.
The capital increase ended on Thursday at midday, but no figures were available as we went to press. In particular, the bank was hoping for €1 billion...