“In a country with an acute employment problem and one of the slowest growth in Europe, cooperative banks play a leading role, especially in those areas with greater difficulties such as the South, where the data photograph the commitment not only economic but also social category”. These are the words of the Secretary General of the National Association of Popular Banks, Giuseppe De Lucia Lumeno, commenting on the data on the decisive role of Credito Popolare in the South. "An even more evident commitment - underlined De Lucia Lumeno - if we remember how Banca Popolare di Bari took charge of saving the Abruzzo bank Tercas, thus safeguarding the development of that territory and the savings of those populations".
More than 63 billion euro of loans and 53 billion euro of deposits. These are the numbers of cooperative banks in the southern regions of the country which, thanks to a widespread presence in the area through 2.171 branches (34,7% of the total presence in the area), continue their work of credit intermediation and support for productive activities. A support also demonstrated by the market share of loans to companies which exceeds 26%, which is also associated with a solid capital base, with a CET1 of 13,7%, well above the minimum requirement. A context, that of the Popular Banks in the South, which is made up of important entities such as Banca Popolare di Bari, with 386 branches (the largest in the Centre-South), Banca Popolare di Puglia e Basilicata (128 branches), Banca Popolare Pugliese (109 branches) and Banca Agricola Popolare di Ragusa (96 branches). Precisely in Puglia, the cooperative banks, with 11 billion euros of loans and 13 billion euros of deposits, represent a precious reference for the local entrepreneurial fabric, with a third of loans to companies and 485 branches, equal to almost 40% of the regional network, and a CET1 of 12,6%, which confirms the full and broad compliance of these banks with the required capitalization levels.
