(Fixes typo in paragraph 3)
ROME, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Italy's Treasury is in favour of reappointing Luigi Lovaglio as Chief Excutive of Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS), two sources familiar with the matter said, at a critical juncture for the bailed-out Tuscan lender.
After leading the bank since 2022 through a restructuring that culminated in last year's takeover of bigger rival Mediobanca, Lovaglio, 70, is seeking a new mandate from the MPS board in April.
He faces challenges with the board still debating whom to put forward as a CEO candidate amid shareholder disagreements, with a judicial probe into the Mediobanca deal complicating matters.
Asking not to be named due the sensitivity of the matter, the sources said the Treasury had so far supported Lovaglio's strategy for the bank and wanted MPS to continue along its current path.
With its residual 4.9% MPS stake, Italy's Treasury would not back any slates of board nominees with an alternative CEO candidate, the sources said, adding Rome would be in favour of naming some new directors.
In reprivatising MPS after a 2017 bailout, Italy has brought onboard as key investors Delfin, the holding company of the Del Vecchio family, and construction tycoon Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone.
Delfin on Friday threw its weight behind Lovaglio saying it backed the bank's management, while Caltagirone has not expressed his support for the CEO with sources saying he has doubts about whether Lovaglio would be the best choice going forward.
Caltagirone on Friday denied any direct clash with Lovaglio, attributing the uncertainty over his future to an internal board debate.
(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte in Rome and Valentina Za in Milan)
