Intesa, Italy's biggest retail bank, took over the good assets of Veneto Banca and Popolare di Vicenza for a symbolic price of one euro in 2017. The two regional banks had collapsed after years of mismanagement and poor lending.

In an emailed statement, Intesa said it had bought only certain assets of Veneto Banca and Popolare di Vicenza, and the acquisition had nothing to do with events of the past.

"Intesa Sanpaolo will not hesitate to defend itself and will exercise all legal and contractual rights," the bank said.

Earlier on Friday, a consumer association said an Italian judge had accepted their request to include Intesa in a trial against former executives of the two Veneto-based lenders for alleged obstruction of regulators.

(Reporting by Agnieszka Flak, editing by Steve Scherer)