The Benetton family's Atlantia Group has plans to sell a minority stake in Aeroporti di Roma (AdR), the company that owns Rome's two airports.

Atlantia Group plans to sell a 30 - 40% stake in AdR to a combination of sovereign funds from the Persian Gulf and East Asia and major infrastructure groups. AdR's value is estimated at between €3.5 billion and €4 billion.

AdR owns 95.91% of Fiumicino and Ciampino airports.

• Rome Fiumicino Airport is Italy's largest airport with 38.6 million passengers served in 2014. It is located in Fiumicino, 35 km southwest of central Rome. The airport serves as the main hub for Alitalia, the largest Italian airline, and Vueling, a Spanish low-cost carrier.
• Rome Ciampino Airport is a joint civilian, commercial and military airport. It is situated 12 km south southeast of central Rome. The airport was Rome's main airport until 1960. After the opening of Fiumicino Airport, Ciampino handled almost exclusively charter and executive flights.

Acording to sources, the firm expects to divide the transaction into two parts: a first stake to be purchased by Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia), while the second will be open to bidding in a process managed by financial advisor Lazard.

Acording to sources, the potential buyers are: Kuwait's infrastructure fund Wren House, Singapore sovereign fund Temasek, Canadian fund Borealis Infrastructure and a large northern European fund.

Atlantia Group has plans to invest the proceeds from the AdR sale in minority stakes in other European airports.