Francesco Ponticelli

Francesco Ponticelli was an Italian politician, lawyer and banker who served as a member of the Constituent [Assembly of Italy] in 1946 and president of the Banca [Monte dei Paschi di Siena] from 1954 to 1959.

Life and career

Born to Stefano Ponticelli and Annunziata Del Punta, in a wealthy family of landowners from Grosseto, he graduated in law and practiced as a lawyer.
In the years following World War I, he, along with his brother Alfredo, undertook the land transformation of their properties between Principina and Le Strillaie, promoting the construction of a road network, hydraulic-agricultural improvements of the land, and the establishment of a grid of farmhouses and stables. In 1927, within the Grand Hotel Bastiani, he signed the founding act of the Consorzio di Bonifica Grossetana, along with eight other landowners.
Initially enrolled in the Italian [People's Party (1919)|Italian People's Party], Ponticelli was one of the most prominent advocates for the establishment of the Christian Democracy party in the provinces of Grosseto and Siena. In July 1946, he was elected as a deputy for the DC in the Constituent Assembly but resigned in September, leaving his position to Reginaldo Monticelli.
From 1954 to 1959, he served as president of Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena.