Intesa Sanpaolo raised its 2026 net profit outlook, citing solid first-half performance as it prepares a $35 billion takeover offer for smaller rival Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena. The Italian bank now expects this year's net profit to exceed 10 billion euros ($11.39 billion), up from previous guidance of around 10 billion euros.\n\nFor the second quarter, Intesa posted a net profit of 2.79 billion euros, up from 2.6 billion euros a year earlier, beating analyst estimates of 2.55 billion euros from Visible Alpha. Revenue grew while operating costs declined.\n\nOperating income rose 5.4% to 7.38 billion euros, surpassing consensus of 6.99 billion euros.

The bank said net interest income, net fee and commission income, and insurance business income all increased.