"I fail to see how we could create value through a merger." Thus, in an interview with the German newspaper Handelsblatt, the CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo, Carlo Messina, goes back to excluding extraordinary transactions for the institute. “We are in a special position – he added – because despite being a bank focused on Italy, at the same time we position ourselves among the most virtuous banks in Europe. On the international front we want grow especially in wealth management. We recently expanded our private banking branch in London and intend to strengthen our presence in Switzerland."
Speaking generally of bank consolidation, the manager explained that “when you think international mergers, you need to create real shareholder value. In my opinion, the benefits of such mergers are not so clear." It is a different matter for the Italian cooperative banks: "Here it is possible to create value for the shareholders".
The number one of Intesa Sanpaolo also said of do not fear that a banking crisis may occur in Italy or in Europe and believes that low interest rates, while impacting margins, have the advantage of lowering bank funding costs. “The only possibility for a new crisis would be a shortage of liquid assets. But in times like these, when liquidity is plentiful, I don't see any real danger of a crisis,” he told the Handelsblatt.
About the level of interest rates, Messina observes that “such low rates are bad for the interest margin, but there are also advantages for banks like ours. In 2011 or 2012 we refinanced with very high spreads. Today, our financing costs are significantly lower. And the low interest rate environment can help attract capital for our rapidly growing asset management business.”
