Banca Intesa is leading player in Italy in Private Banking with a market share of 8.4%

Banca Intesa strengthens its Private Banking business and launches a new service model for customers: Intesa Private Banking, the bank specialised to serve the Group’s Private customers and integrated in the Retail Division.

Banca Intesa is already active in Private Banking in Italy and currently boasts 30 billion euro of managed assets, 20,000 clients, 65 Private Centres on the territory and 375 Private Banker and serves customers with financial assets from 1 million euro.

As of 1st January 2005 – date in which the new structure will be fully operational – Banca Intesa’s private customers, will be able to access a new instrument specifically-devised to meet their needs, flexible, customised and offering all the advantages of being part of Banca Intesa’s Retail Division.

The project aimed at strengthening Banca Intesa’s Private Banking business commenced last July with the acquisition of a 100% stake in Credit Agricole Indosuez Private Banking Italia; a joint venture between Banca Intesa and Crédit Agricole aimed at achieving the best economies of scale and scope in this sector.

The distinctive features of Intesa Private Banking refer to customer management, range of products and services, distribution channels and structure.

Customer management. The key characteristics of the service have been designed to ensure that the customer has utmost decision-making power and maximum flexibility. In fact, the customer, in addition to the new services:

• mantains his/her reference Private Banker,
• mantains his/her current account at Banca Intesa branches,
• may use Private Centres to carry out the main banking operations as well as for investment and financing activities,
• may continue to use Banca Intesa branches for daily transactions, using dedicated structures and services accessed using the Key Card Private given to private customers.

Range of products and services. Intesa Private Banking offers a complete range of products and services, produced by the Group and by high standing outside companies, capable of satisfying all customer needs, and builds on:

• the coordination with the internal product factories (hedge, insurance, structured bonds).
• the Open Platform which offers approximately 250 third party Sicavs,
• a vanguard system for wealth management and constant risk monitoring, cutting-edge in Italy (Pianificazione Finanziaria Globale),
• the possibility of satisfying the corporate needs of customer/entrepreneurs.

Intesa Private Banking wants to be a reference point for its customers and not only for financial issues. Its service range therefore also includes the following services: legal and tax consulting, fiduciary and legal entity advisory, real estate and art advisory.

Distribution channels and structure. Intesa Private Banking is present all over the Italian territory with a grass-root distribution network managed by private banking professionals. Integrated in Banca Intesa’s Retail Division, it will be capable of combining the advantages deriving from over 2,000 branches present all over Italy and from the close relations that Gruppo Intesa has with over 800,000 Italian companies, with the advantage of being a subsidiary of a large universal bank with a strong territorial coverage.