MILAN (Reuters) - U.S. investment fund BlackRock (>> BlackRock, Inc.) has lowered its stake in Italian lender Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena (>> Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA) to 3.23 pct from 5.75 percent, according to a filing published by market regulator Consob on Wednesday.

The sale took place on April 15, Consob said.

Shares in Monte Paschi lost 10 percent on April 15 after the bank said it was evaluating its capital needs, following a report it may increase the size of a planned rights issue to 5 billion from 3 billion euros.

(Reporting by Francesca Landini, editing by Valentina Za)

Stocks treated in this article : BlackRock, Inc., Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA