Intesa Sanpaolo will allocate 1,5 billion euros to initiatives and projects aimed at reducing inequalities in the years between 2023 and 2027. This was announced today by Carlo Messina, Managing Director and CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo, in Brescia during the meeting " Nobody excluded. Growing together in a more equal country." Intesa Sanpaolo thus creates "the main social program promoted in the country by a private entity" thanks to the "strength of the balance sheet and the sensitivity of the people", said Messina. Yesterday the institute's board of directors announced that instead of paying theextra tax on extra profits (equal to 828 million) prefers to reserve an amount multiplied by 2,5 and equal to approximately 2 billion euros and will contribute, in fact, to supporting social initiatives with the deal announced today.
Created ad hoc "Intesa Sanpaolo for social issues". Messina will follow it personally
Precisely to strengthen this strategy in favor of the country, territories and communities, says a note from the institute, the Bank has also equipped itself with a new organizational unit dedicated, “Intesa Sanpaolo per il Sociale”, based in Brescia and with functions of direction and governance of the social activities carried out by the Group. “For us it is important to go beyond declarations of principle and translate our values into a daily and credible result of a precise strategy, company policies, actions and habits attentive to the needs of the territories and communities" he said Messina. “This is why we are creating a new organizational unit, “Intesa Sanpaolo for Social Affairs”, dedicated exclusively to this activity, which I will follow personally. I trust that other protagonists in the economic and business world can develop interventions of a similar nature because a fair and cohesive society guarantees a better stability of the country to face the challenges of the future, some serious, to which it is called".
From 2018 to 2022 the Intesa program reached one billion
“The data that we constantly collect confirm that a large segment of the Italian population is excluded from the possibility of enjoying the levels of individual well-being typical of an advanced economy,” Messina said. “With the announcement to allocate one and a half billion euros to social issues by 2027, we make a further strong commitment to shareholders, customers and society as a whole to combat this situation”.
“Our attention, our sensitivity towards the community are not born today; they are an essential part of the roots of our group" said the manager again. “Over the last decade we have increasingly articulated our program in favor of financial, educational and social inclusion. In particular between the 2018 and the 2022 il program has reached a dimension equal to 1 billion euros".
For employees: salary increases brought forward to the end of the year
Furthermore, Intesa Sanpaolo wanted to meet the needs of the people who work within the institute by announcing the decision, in a current context with a sharp increase in the cost of living, to provide aanticipation of salary increases valid for the fourth quarter of the year, also proceeding with the restoration of the full basis for calculating the severance pay, pending the results of the national sector negotiations. “This is a fair and concrete recognition for the colleagues who contribute decisively to the success, solidity and results that have allowed the Group to become one of the European banking leaders” said Messina.
Italy is strong, it has significant growth potential
More generally regarding Italy, Messina said during the work of the initiative: “We live in a very strong country. I am often mystified by the way we ourselves speak Italy, a country that has indisputable strong elements, an extremely strong, diversified business world with very significant potential. It has a world of families and savings that is unparalleled in Europe,” said the manager. “Italy certainly has a dimension of debt significant, but the wealth of our country it is so high that even public debt certainly has conditions sustainability to the extent that our country will be able to activate important growth processes and will be able to achieve what is envisaged by the Pnrr". According to the number one of Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy “absolutely has the potential” to grow in a way significant. But Messina said, “as in all countries in the world, there is an increase in poverty and of inequalities and inflation from this point of view is undoubtedly an absolute injustice, it brings more hardship to those who have less resources and keeps those with privileged conditions in a privileged condition".
