Milano, 12 August 2003

The Board of Directors of Intesa Mediocredito, chaired by Mario Zanone Poma, approved the Half-Year Report as at 30th June 2003.

 

The Bank achieved positive results both in terms of operating volumes and profitability; in a still unfavourable economic situation, operations were sustained by: i) the offering of customised solutions to meet the medium-term requirements of companies, ii) the structure’s commercial orientation, iii) its capacity in assessing creditworthiness and pricing transactions, and iv) the effective operating collaboration with the networks of Gruppo Intesa.

 

The Bank registered a net interest and other banking income of 108.4 million euro, with a 9% rise with respect to the same period of 2002, and a net income of 29.4 million euro (+22%). Shareholders' equity exceeded 830 million euro.

Operating flows as at 30th June 2003 confirmed the standing of Intesa Mediocredito as the largest Italian bank specialised in financing the development of small and medium-sized companies: the loan portfolio exceeded 13 billion euro (+8%) and was made up of loans to over 17,000 business clients; loans disbursed in the semester reached 1.8 billion euro.

 

Intesa Mediocredito, started operations as of 1st July 2001 continuing the activities of Mediocredito Lombardo and is Gruppo Intesa’s specialised entity in medium- and long-term lending.

The Chairman Zanone Poma, after recalling that Mediocredito Lombardo started operations on 2nd March 1953, declared that the figures for the 2003 Half-Year Report confirm the continuation of a corporate history based on innovation and efficiency.

 

He also highlighted the efforts to ensure full operations in the subsidised lending area, on all the Italian territory and underlined the significance of the imminent opening of the branch in Firenze.

 

Intesa Mediocredito is already compliant with the new supervisory requirements set forth in the Basel 2 agreements, which will not lead to any restriction in loans to small and medium-sized companies but will, on the contrary, lead to more transparent bank-company relations.

 

Zanone Poma also underlined that the primary positioning of Intesa Mediocredito in the medium-term lending segment enables it to develop its full potential within the Group.

 

As concerns the Bank’s future prospects, the General Manager Giovanni Bizzozero  highlighted the importance of consolidating a direct approach to customers via further strengthening lending to SMEs.  In particular he stressed the objective, already being pursued, of offering customers new services and products for the purpose of further satisfying, with specialised competencies, the non-standardised financial needs of companies by identifying tailor-made solutions and by the offering specific services (business plans, etc.).

 

Lastly Bizzozero underlined that the Bank will continue to consider funding under the Sabatini Law a priority, since the Law in the last few decades gave a significant contribution to industrial development in Italy.