mechanism of audit control and to verificate financial and economic activities of banks,
as well as to increase responsibility for offenses by managers of banking institutions.
The adoption of new banking legislation and the start of the process of forming
a single European financial market have sharply raised the question of increasing the
capitalization and competitiveness of the Italian banking sector. This has prompted
public authorities, the Association of Italian Banks and leading trade union federations
to concentrate joint efforts on the development and implementation of a single program
for the development of the banking sector, known as the "Protocol of June 4, 1997".
The Protocol stated that the Italian banking sector was operating in less favorable
conditions than its main European competitors. Taking into account the development
of the processes of globalization and the creation of a single European currency market,
the document addressed the problem of remedying the situation, namely: transitioning
from a large number of low-power banks to the creation of a network of large
competitive financial institutions; eleminating the existing system, in which many
banks had a cooperative ownership form and a large number of small owners, in favor
of substantial parts of equity in the hands of owners with significant financial
resources; increasing level of profitability of banking institutions to acceptable level.
The development of the Italian banking sector within the framework of the
above-mentioned program allowed to reduce significantly the gap between the major
European banking systems in terms of competitiveness and financial capacity of banks,
optimizating the property structure, positioning on international markets and ensuring
the necessary level of profitability.
The financial crisis of 2008 has severely hit the banking system and the social
sphere of Italy. As a result, there was a low level of growth and high unemployment.
Italy came out of a crisis with low percentage of growth caused by the lack of reforms,
which has provoked the loss of country competitiveness in 15 years.
In order to overcome the consequences of the global financial crisis, the Italian
government adopted a number of appropriate measures to stabilize the national banking
system in three areas: recapitalization of Italian banks; supporting operations aimed at
overcoming the liquidity crisis; state guarantees to depositors.
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