Benettons, Blackstone obtain Italy's green light on Atlantia takeover bid

MILAN (Reuters) - The Benetton family and U.S. fund Blackstone secured a green light from the Italian government for their takeover offer for infrastructure group Atlantia, their vehicle Schema Alfa said on Thursday.

"The Presidency of the Council of Ministers ... has communicated to the Offeror its decision, adopted on June 22, 2022, to not exercise the special powers," Schema Alfa, which launched the bid, said in a statement.

Rome has special "golden powers" it can use to block or set strict conditions on takeovers in strategic sectors, such as airports, defence, energy and banking.

(Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari; Editing by Mark Porter)