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In mid-2020 Rome secured the lion's share of a 724-billion-euro kitty aimed at helping EU members emerge from COVID greener and more tech-friendly. Italy's 191.5 billion euros ($210 billion) of cheap loans and grants, to be received in tranches through 2026, was intended for productive investments in the bloc's most chronically stagnant economy. MICRO-PROJECTSMore than half the EU money is meant to go on digitalisation and ecological transition, with the rest devoted to sustainable transport, education, social cohesion and health. The government is still awaiting a 19-billion-euro tranche of the EU funds blocked in March over missed policy targets stemming from 2022. It brings Italy's byzantine rules closer to EU standards, but Gobbato said people will initially find it hard to adapt.

Persons: Flavio Lo Scalzo, Rome, Roberto Perotti, Giorgia Meloni, Mario Draghi, Giuseppe Conte, Carlo Messina, Intesa, Vittorio Soldavini, Davide Carlucci, It's, Gustavo Piga, Rome's, Ilaria, Dentons, Gobbato, Catherine Evans Organizations: REUTERS, Milan's Bocconi University, Treasury, European Central Bank, Technology, Tor Vergata University, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Milan, Italy, ROME, MILAN, tranches, Brussels, Italy's, Italian, Parma

☆ Goldman picks a raft of discounted global stocks — and gives two more than 100% upside
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Lucy Handley | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Analysts at Goldman Sachs have picked a number of global stocks it says are trading at a discount — and said two of its picks could rise more than 100% over the next 12 months. The analysts picked telecommunications company BT Group , giving it an estimated 130% potential upside in the next year. Goldman also gave Lloyds Bank potential upside of 78%, and said South African technology group Naspers could rise by 71% over 12 months. 'Upside risks' The stocks all appear on Goldman's list called "value buys with earnings upside potential." The bank gave Intesta Sanpaolo a 58% potential upside to its 12-month price target.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, John Sawtell, Goldman, Andrew Lee, Sanpaolo, Chris Hallam, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Goldman, BT Group, BT, Natwest, Deutsche Bank, Lloyds Bank, Porsche Locations: African

☆ Intesa CEO: bank to expand in wealth management thanks to technology
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Valentina Za | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, July 11 (Reuters) - Thanks to cost-saving investments in technology, Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) plans to grow its market share in wealth management without having to make any acquisitions, Chief Executive Carlo Messina said on Tuesday. Presenting a new digital financial advisory service for private banking customers, weeks after launching the group's new digital bank for mass-market clients, Messina said Intesa was increasingly acquiring fintech features. In a similar fashion, Intesa said it was lunching Fideuram Direct, using technology to serve younger and less demanding private banking clients. "We can imagine for example the son of one of our private banking customers as a Fideuram Direct customer," he said. Fideuram Direct, the new digital service, has already 60,000 clients and 2.5 billion euros in AUMs, Intesa said.

Persons: Intesa, Carlo Messina, Messina, Tommaso Corcos, Corcos, Valentina Za, Alvise Armellini, Keith Weir Organizations: MILAN, Thomson Locations: AUMs

☆ Ghost of Silicon Valley Bank turns up in Italy
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Lisa Jucca | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The rapid collapse of Silicon Valley Bank earlier this year was largely down to an ill-advised bond portfolio and liabilities that were less sticky than assumed. While Italy’s Eurovita isn’t a bank, its demise has some similarities with events across the Atlantic. Eurovita, whose 2022 balance sheet was only about 15 billion euros, chiefly offered life insurance products that guaranteed policyholders’ invested capital and a fixed annual return. Follow @LJucca on TwitterCONTEXT NEWSItaly’s top four insurers and Germany’s Allianz have agreed a multibillion-euro rescue deal for ailing life insurer Eurovita, industry supervisor IVASS said on June 30. The deal also involves banks that sold the insurance products through their networks.

Persons: policyholders ’, Cinven, Intesa, redemptions, Eurovita, Marco Sesana, weren’t, IVASS, George Hay, Oliver Taslic Organizations: MILAN, Reuters, Banco, Reuters Breakingviews, Allianz, Germany’s Allianz, Thomson Locations: Silicon, Eurovita

☆ Italy's top insurers, banks strike Eurovita rescue deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Valentina Za | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, June 30 (Reuters) - Italy's top four insurers and Germany's Allianz (ALVG.DE) have agreed a multi-billion euro rescue deal for Eurovita, industry supervisor IVASS said on Friday after months of work to broker an accord which also involves 25 banks. Earlier this year, Eurovita became the first Italian insurance company to be placed under special administration, after running into trouble due to higher interest rates. Insurers Generali (GASI.MI), Intesa Sanpaolo Vita (PST.MI), Poste Vita (PST.MI), UnipolSAI (US.MI) and Allianz will set up a new company that will take on Eurovita life insurance policies. To prevent the five insurers from being hit by redemptions once the ban is lifted, banks that sold Eurovita the products are participating in the rescue. The lenders will provide financing to repay Eurovita customers who redeem their policies, while holding the underlying bonds to maturity and neutralising any losses.

Persons: IVASS, Eurovita, redemptions, Intesa, Vitale &, Gatti Pavesi Bianchi, Valentina Za, Alvise Armellini, Alexander Smith Organizations: MILAN, Germany's Allianz, Allianz, Banco, Credit Agricole, Thomson Locations: Eurovita

☆ Digital banking in Italy's industrial heartland at over 75%, Bank of Italy says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Digital banking in Lombardy has grown 20 percentage points since 2015, the central bank said in a report on the region's economy, which grew 3.8% in 2022, slightly above the national average. The number of bank branches in Lombardy fell 4% in 2022, bringing the total decline since 2008 to 39%, compared with 41% for the European Union, the Bank of Italy said. Even with the reduction, Lombardy has 41 bank branches per 100,000 residents, against a national average of 36, it added. To cut costs and upgrade its IT infrastructure, Italy's biggest bank Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) this month launched its digital-only bank Isybank. Citing Eurostat data, the Bank of Italy said 67% of Lombardy's population in 2022 accessed banking services online.

Persons: Andrea Orcel, Valentina Za, Richard Chang Organizations: MILAN, Bank of, Digital, Banco, European Union, Eurostat, Thomson Locations: Lombardy, Italy's, Bank of Italy

☆ As downturn fears grow, Bank of America names 8 global stocks to ride out a recession
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Bank of America has named the European companies whose stocks are expected to perform robustly in the face of a possible economic downturn. It comes amid increasing signs that the European economy could be headed for a period of extended recession. Bank of America's proprietary Style Cycle model also shows that the region is facing a "recession phase." The forward cash yield measures how much cash a company is expected to generate for its shareholders over the next year compared to its current market price. The cash yield also includes returns through buybacks.

Persons: Intesa Sanpaolo, Paulina Strzelinska Organizations: of America, of, KBC, Eni, Nordea Bank, Barclays, Aviva, BNP, Bank, America's Locations: Europe, Belgium, Italy, Finland, Repsol, Spain, United Kingdom, France, buybacks, industrials

☆ Intesa launches cloud-based Isybank in digital push
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Vaibhav Sadhamta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Isybank is powered by cloud technology provided by Britain's ThoughtMachine, a cloud-native banking technology firm. High-street banks globally face a big challenge in replacing their existing core IT infrastructure, known as mainframe, with cloud technology. Legacy systems pose a major hurdle, while the task is easy for challenger banks built from scratch on cloud technology. Intesa Sanpaolo has forecast its new digital bank would save around 800 million euros a year in 2026-2027, up from 600 million euros in 2025, according to a strategy presentation delivered in February last year. Isybank targets some 4 million Intesa customers who generate around 200 million euros in revenues a year and could become more profitable for the bank if shifted away from branches given they already only use digital bank services.

Persons: Britain's ThoughtMachine, Paul Taylor, Intesa, Intesa Sanpaolo, Carlo Messina, Stefano Barrese, Valentina Za, Conor Humphries Organizations: MILAN, Google, Thomson Locations: Italy's, Italy, Europe

☆ EU to propose greater transparency for default swaps on eight banks - EU document
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 31 (Reuters) - The European Commission will propose greater transparency in the trading of credit default swaps of eight top banks to mirror rules in U.S. markets, a European Union document seen by Reuters showed on Wednesday. So-called single name credit default swaps have come under regulatory scrutiny after the fall and state-backed rescue of Credit Suisse triggered high volatility on the CDS market for some systemic banks, Deutsche Bank in particular, on March 24. "One of the conclusions on the events of Friday, 24 March, was that single name CDS contracts are opaque and illiquid," the EU executive body said in a document for a meeting of EU states on Thursday. The Commission said it proposes to re-insert CDS on Santander, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, ING Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, Societe Generale and DZ Bank into the scope of derivatives transactions subject to post trade transparency. Incomplete and asymmetrical reporting of CDS contracts linked to systemically important banks causes insecurity in markets during shocks, the paper said.

Persons: Intesa, Huw Jones, Jon Boyle, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: European, Reuters, Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Santander, BNP, Credit Agricole, ING Bank, Societe Generale, DZ Bank, Thomson Locations: EU

☆ Pent-up demand promises record tourist season for southern Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Giselda Vagnoni | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

What's more, there appears to be growing demand for the luxury end of the spectrum. Portugal registered more than 2.8 million of foreign visitors from January to March, the best first quarter on record, according to official data. Airlines such as Lufthansa, easyJet and Ryanair have confirmed robust summer bookings while Ryanair, in anticipation of strong demand, has just ordered 150 new 737 Max-10s and optioned another 150. Italian travel and tourism company Alpitour forecasts turnover 30% higher this year. "We already see a very strong demand to book Christmas holidays in 2023.

Foreign holdings of Italian government paper increased in February after 10 consecutive monthly declines, according to Bank of Italy data. "This is a magic moment for Italian bonds," he told Reuters. The share of Italian government debt held by foreign investors fell to below 20% at the end of 2022 from around 50% before the 2008 financial crisis, Bank of Italy data shows. The Italian Treasury has already taken steps to shore up demand for its bonds as the ECB retreats, by boosting purchases among domestic households and companies. Together, Italian families and firms now hold around 215 billion euros, or 9%, of Rome's debt, UniCredit's Cazzulani said, the highest level since mid-2015.

☆ Italy's Intesa embraces AI to tame bank supervision "information overload"
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, May 16 (Reuters) - Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) has introduced an artificial intelligence tool it has designed to wade through thousands of publications on banking supervision, Italy's biggest bank said on Tuesday. The machine learning tool, dubbed Lisa or Linguistic Intelligence for Supervisory Awareness, uses language processing algorithms to scan documents for correlations and patterns of meaning to help predict future trends. Intesa has a dedicated team of people who worked with Lisa, validating its results but also expanding its awareness of banking regulatory issues. "Banking supervision is an area where it is fair to speak of information overload, with truly massive and exponential content production," said Walter Chiaradonna, head of Intesa's supervisory strategic steering department. Chiaradonna listed "practices, interviews, statements, texts and in-depth studies that in turn generate a proliferation of information that is unmanageable without adequate support."

☆ European banks' business model is 'safe and sound': Intesa Sanpaolo CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailEuropean banks' business model is 'safe and sound': Intesa Sanpaolo CEOCarlo Messina, CEO at Intesa Sanpaolo, weighs in on the outlook for European banks, which he says are in a different situation to their counterparts in the U.S., and have a solid business model and are supported by central bank supervision.

☆ Italian bank Intesa raises profit target after beating forecasts
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Valentina Za | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The lender forecast 7 billion euros ($7.7 billion) in net profit this year, having said in February that it would top last year's result of 5.5 billion euros. The upgrade comes after fellow heavyweight UniCredit (CRDI.MI) raised its 2023 profit target this week by more than a fifth. Intesa reported first-quarter net income of 1.96 billion euros, far above a 1.54 billion euro consensus in analyst forecasts compiled by Reuters. Total revenue topped expectations at 6.06 billion euros, up 7% from the previous quarter. However, it said the boost from higher rates would continue to drive profit higher and forecast more than 13 billion euros in net interest income this year.

☆ Russia should not take temporary control of foreign banks' units, central-bank governor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday signed a decree placing the Russian assets of Finland's Fortum (FORTUM.HE) and Germany's Uniper (UN01.DE), which both operate power plants in Russia, under Moscow's control. "Such decisions should be made with very good reasons, connected to the stable functioning of the Russian economy," Nabiullina said when asked whether Russia could do the same with banks. Foreign banks have stepped in to take business from Russian lenders hit by sweeping Western sanctions imposed after Moscow despatched troops to Ukraine in February 2022. Austria's Raiffeisen Bank International (RBIV.VI), earned more than half of its profit last year from Russia. Reporting by Elena Fabrichnaya, Vladimir Soldatkin, Alexander Marrow and Jake Cordell; Editing by Sharon SingletonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Italy's FSI invests up to $110 million in debit card operator BANCOMAT
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, April 26 (Reuters) - Italian investment fund FSI has agreed to invest up to 100 million euros ($110 million) in debit card operator BANCOMAT to support its expansion in Europe. Under a new business plan drawn up by the company, its main shareholders and FSI, BANCOMAT will complete targeted acquisitions and build a new platform to offer clients a wider range of services and products. In early 2022, it invested in the payments business of cooperative banking group BCC ICCREA, acquiring a 60% stake in electronic payment company BCC Pay. The payments sector has been swept up in a wave of mergers and acquisitions as it seeks the financial muscle to keep up with technological advances while contending with the threat from new entrants. The accord comes after FSI last year signed a preliminary deal for an investment in BANCOMAT.

☆ Deutsche Bank Russian profits leapt in 2022, even as assets dropped
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 20 (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank's (DBKGn.DE) Russian subsidiary's profits jumped by almost six times in 2022 to 5.4 billion roubles ($66.42 million), Russian audit documents showed, the latest example of a foreign lender booking strong earnings in the Russian market. Deutsche Bank said it would wind down its business in Russia in March 2022, joining other foreign lenders in leaving the country. Profit for the period leapt by more than 480% to 5.4 billion roubles. However, total assets dropped 36.3% to 81.6 billion roubles. Net interest income jumped more than 10 times to just over 7 billion roubles.

☆ Italian investor in UniCredit, Banco BPM sees 'strategic value' in deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Valentina Za | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Italy's No.2 bank UniCredit was preparing an offer for number three Banco BPM in 2022, before the Ukraine conflict forced CEO Andrea Orcel to focus on its Russia exposure. Orcel had looked to move on Banco BPM soon after becoming UniCredit CEO two years ago, but instead entered talks with the government over a possible Monte dei Paschi (BMPS.MI) acquisition that eventually fell through. Fondazione CRT holds 1.9% of UniCredit and 1.8% of Banco BPM. Twenty years later that gap is still there so the strategic value of the deal remains". Born from the merger of BPM with Verona-based Banco Popolare, Banco BPM controls 12% of Lombardy's banking market, twice UniCredit's market share.

By offloading some of the risk on their loans, the banks can significantly reduce how much capital they need to set aside to cover potential losses, according to law firm Clifford Chance. A bank can normally transfer risks of losses equivalent to around 7% to 12% of a loan portfolio, two market sources said. With synthetic structures, a bank transfers the risk via credit derivatives or guarantees but keeps holding the underlying exposures. The IFC sold BNP a $50 million guarantee on $1 billion of loans to emerging markets, they said, without disclosing terms. While Europe has been at the forefront for risk transfers, the stock of loans covered by SRTs is small relative to European banks' balance sheets.

☆ Google opens Italy's second cloud region in Turin city
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 23 (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google will set up its second cloud region in Italy, the company said on Thursday in a blog, underscoring the country's efforts to turn into a global hub for cloud computing. The second cloud region opens in the northern Italian city of Turin, with an existing one in Milan. Cloud regions refer to clusters of data centers in a location that will allow customers in that area to get faster access to data. Google Cloud regions of Milan and Turin could generate a new market that could be valued around 1.90 billion euros ($2.07 billion) in a three-year period through 2025, Google said in the blog, citing data from an independent study. ($1 = 0.9182 euros)Reporting by Lavanya Ahire in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann ThoppilOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

LONDON, March 21 (Reuters) - Distressed debt investors and large hedge funds are buying up Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) additional tier-1 bonds at rock-bottom prices after they were written down to zero in the Swiss bank's rescue by cross-town rival UBS (UBSG.S). AT1 bonds issued by other European banks tumbled on Monday as the treatment of Credit Suisse AT1 bondholders highlighted the risks of this type of debt. Buyers have included a mixture of hedge funds and deep distressed debt funds, which Southey expected would need to hold the bonds for an extended period before they paid off. Some of those buyers intend to join groups that would litigate to improve odds on cashing in on the bonds, Southey said. "It's quite possible that we will see demand from buyers of subordinated bank debt to have more explicit protections written into these bond prospectuses in the future."

☆ Short sellers are doubling down on these European banks — and Credit Suisse isn't their top target
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Short-sellers are sitting on nearly $2 billion in profit from bets against the European banking sector this month so far. The worries heightened in Europe on Wednesday as Credit Suisse shares fell by 24% — its biggest daily loss. However, data shows that Credit Suisse — Switzerland's second-largest lender — doesn't even make the list of the top five most-shorted European Banks. BNP Paribas remains the biggest target for short-sellers, with $3.1 billion in total wagers expecting shares to fall. The following table shows the European lenders that saw the largest increase in shorts over the past 30 days.

☆ Citi says Europe's banks are unlikely to face SVB-like issues and names 3 top picks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

European banks are unlikely to experience the issues seen at U.S.-based Silicon Valley Bank , according to analysts at investment bank Citi, who named their three top stocks in the sector. 12, Citi analysts said there is "very limited read-across" to the European banking sector due to differences in reserve capital and regulatory framework. "In Europe we are not aware of any banks with such high deposit concentration risk," the Citi analysts added. European bank stocks to buy Citi analysts are overweight European banks, and said BBVA , Lloyds , Intesa were their "top picks." This means that European banks have not experienced a large drawdown in capital from a change in bond values, according to the analysts.

☆ Italy's UniCredit, Intesa fall as investors fret over bond portfolio risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A view of the Unicredit headquarters of which many employees are working from home due to a coronavirus outbreak, in Milan, Italy March 2, 2020. REUTERS/Yara NardiMILAN, March 10 (Reuters) - Shares in leading Italian banks UniCredit (CRDI.MI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) fell sharply on Friday following a sell-off in U.S. and Asian banks driven by concerns lenders potentially face losses on their government bond portfolios. The rise in interest rates has hammered the value of those portfolios, with Italian banks seen as particularly exposed given the risk premiums investors demand to hold Italian paper rather than higher-rated German government bonds. By 0820 GMT shares in UniCredit lost 4.5% and Intesa around 4%. Reporting by Valentina Za Editing by Keith WeirOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ ECB deposit rate to peak at 3.75% or higher as inflation stays sticky: Reuters poll
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Jonathan Cable | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Signage is seen outside the European Central Bank (ECB) building, in Frankfurt, Germany, July 21, 2022. All 60 economists polled by Reuters March 7-9 believed her and said the bank's deposit rate would rise 50 basis points to 3.00% on Thursday. Medians in the poll showed the euro zone's central bank adding 25 basis points at the following three meetings in May, June and July to give a terminal deposit rate of 3.75%, higher than the 3.25% peak expected in a February poll. While the median showed the deposit rate peaking at 3.75% it was a view held by only 19 of 60 economists surveyed. There is now only a 34% chance of a recession within the coming year, the poll found, down from 50% in a January poll.

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