The carousel of rumors relating to appointments at the top of public subsidiaries begins, in a season that will see a record number of expiries and renewals at state or semi-state companies: there is talk of 842 appointments at the head of 155 companies controlled and participated by the MEF: never so many in a single round.
Leonardo towards changing of the guard
Among the most prominent companies is the Italian defense giant Leonardo. Among the causes of the failure to renew the current CEO Roberto Cingolani, whom the Meloni Government had appointed in 2022, there would be purely political reasons and an overly pro-European attitude, while for the Daily Fact there would be tensions with Palazzo Chigi – there is even talk of “frost” – and a lack of strategic alignment on some dossiers, such as that of the air shield.
In his replacement, various press sources indicate among the most probable candidates for the position of CEO the current number one of MBDA Italia Lorenzo Mariani, thanks to his long militancy in the Group and after having held the role of co-director alongside Cingolani until 2025, but according to the Corriere della Sera Fincantieri CEO Piergiorgio Folgiero would also be in the running, having been in office since 2022 at the helm of the company active in shipbuilding, where he had been reconfirmed by the current Government. Among the eligible candidates are also the names of the CEO of Ferrovie dello Stato Stefano Donnarumma and the number one of Rheinmetall Italia Alessandro Ercolani. A final decision is expected to be made this week.
The stock suffers on the stock market
“In light of the performance of recent years and knowing that he had been appointed by the current government, the decision to change would represent a surprise,” say Equita experts, while for Websim analysts a changing of the guard “would also create a phase of strategic uncertainty at a time of strong geopolitical tensions.”
In fact, Leonardo shares are suffering on the stock market today: the stock is the worst on the FTSE MIB with a loss of 7.4% at 57.65 euros per share. A sudden movement, triggered by the spread of rumors relating to the non-renewal of Cingolani, since the company has reached a record capitalization in the last 2-3 years, also in response to the increase in defense spending by European governments. Since the beginning of the year, Leonardo has gained over 17%, while the performance compared to the same period in 2025 shows a +43%.
A drop in the ocean: 842 assignments close to expiration
The turnover of seats this year marks a new record and is much larger than that of the big Italian defense team. According to the latest report from the Comar study centre, in the coming months 118 boards of directors and 96 boards of auditors will be renewed for a total of 842 positions in 155 companies participated by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
A commitment that is particularly significant this year, because the three-year mandates of many listed companies such as Banca MPS, Enav, Enel, Eni, Leonardo, Poste Italiane, Terna are coming to an end. Also expiring are several unlisted companies such as Amco, Consap, Equitalia Justice, Infratel, IPZS, PagoPa, Ram, RFI, Trenitalia, Sogesid, Sogin, Sport e Salute, Strait of Messina, Sviluppo Lavoro Italia, Techno Sky, Valvitalia, and numerous subsidiaries of large groups such as Autostrade dello Stato, Eni, Enel, Invitalia, Leonardo, Poste, Sace, GSE (AU, GME and RSE) and Rai (Rai Com, Rai Cinema, Rai Way).
The companies for which renewal is expected in 2026 express revenues of 206 billion euros, profits of 16.5 billion, with 288,120 employees; as of April 2, their stock market capitalization was more than 282.6 billion euros.
