Ah, the world of banking—where the only thing more exciting than watching paint dry is observing stock fluctuations that hardly fluctuate! Ladies and gentlemen, gatherings of financial wizards might look a bit something like this: “Oh look, Intesa Sanpaolo is up 0.2%! Alert the media! Call the Queen! Stop the presses!” One would think we’re talking about a national crisis, but here we are talking about the riveting world of finance. I mean, let’s be honest, the most thrilling thing about bank shares going up is wondering if you should get a new cat or just splurge on an extra pint.
Now, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni—who we can assume spends her evenings discussing extra bank profits like they’re the latest hit Netflix series—says this is a “more courageous government than the left on banks and extra profits.” I mean really, how brave can you be if the banks are laughing all the way to the vault? “Extra profits?” Oh, please! These profits are so large they have their own gravitational pull! In fact, they’re sitting in a corner, sipping lattes, counting their hundreds, while the rest of us ponder our life choices—like whether to eat that last slice of pizza or not. (Spoiler alert: you should definitely eat it!)
And let’s talk about that potential government intervention which seems more like a polite tap on the shoulder than a decisive blow. It’s like saying you’re putting a lid on the cookie jar… when the cookie jar is actually a vault filled with gold coins and the lid is made of soft velvet. Sure, they’ll be chipping in 3-4 billion euros, but it’s hardly a hit when they just had profits like a Kardashian’s Instagram following—out of this world, really.
Now, for the pièce de résistance, Matteo Salvini—who, let’s face it, clearly has a knack for stirring up the soup of political discourse—demands that it’s the bankers who should be making sacrifices. I can almost hear him: “Hey bankers, put down your caviar and help us out here!” Lovely thought, but is he really expecting the folks who pull in 40 billion to start making sacrifices or is he more in tune with some sort of group therapy session for the nation’s wallets?
So, as we sidestep around corporate profits and tax alterations like we’re navigating a mob of angry pigeons in a park, let’s remember that, at the heart of this sleepy discussion, is the vital role of banks…and perhaps, a little more courage when it comes to sharing those extra profits. If only we could transform at least some of that into tangible relief for the national health system. But then again, love, sweet love, makes the world go round—unless you’re a banker, in which case, it’s all about those profits.
In conclusion, folks, if banks were any more relaxed, they’d be lying on a beach sipping piña coladas while we squint to see if that stock price has just moved by a penny. The moral of the story? Keep an eye on those bank shares, but maybe pack a snack because it’s going to be a long, drawn-out affair. Cheers!
For bank shares, Tuesday’s session it was sleepy. The usual ups and downs of the day but, in the end, Intesa Sanpaolo closed up 0.2%, Unicredit practically unchanged. Bper gained 0.3% as did the bank Mediolanum (at 30% of Berlusconi family). Banco Bpm did better (+1.7%). In short, exactly no worries for the intervention that the government is preparing to include in the budget law. This year we joked too.
Although the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni you’re talking about a “more courageous government than the left on banks and extra profits”, it is clear that the banks’ profits they will not be affected in the slightest. The measure, which should bring into the public coffers 3-4 billion euros in two yearsit’s actually a round game. The banks, essentially, pay first what they would have had to pay later anyway. Just to have a dimensional order, remember that the Italian banking system closed the last two financial years with profits of around fifty billion euros a year. But we’re not talking about profits here anyway.
Read Also
Giorgetti’s slalom among the new taxes envisaged in the budget law: “They are just revenue adjustments”
No increase in tax on corporate profits, no one-off extraordinary withdrawals but simply an intervention on Dta (deferred tax assets). The deductibility of 2025 and 2026 is postponed, with a recovery deferred over time to ensure that the revenue does not then suddenly plummet.
The stress of the Italian banking system is resolved in advancing some money to the government. This is the “sacrifice” requested by Minister Giorgetti who, at the League meeting, had assured that he knew how to distinguish between those who can make sacrifices and those who cannot. Shortly after the party leader Matteo Salvini he thundered: “Let the bankers pay, not the workers”.
This explains the placidity with which the leader of Forza Italia Antonio Tajani, always very careful in voicing any discontent of the Berlusconi family, he welcomed the measure. “It is in the order of magnitude of 3-4 billion euros”, he confirmed before the CDM, explaining that “In any case there will be no new taxes, that’s for sure”. Yet in the evening Salvini had the opportunity to express his satisfaction: “The intervention on the banks was good, as the League has always hoped. Given the 40 billion earnings in 2023 alone, I expect important contributions to support the country and, above all, the national health system”. It is legitimate to assume that the final text of the measure has not yet been read.
1 EUROIL PRIMO MESE
and then €5.99 per month
- Read all the articles on the site without limits
- Participate live every Thursday at 4.00 pm in the ilfattoquotidiano.it editorial meeting and propose your investigation
- Participate in the discussion forum with the editorial staff and the Director and launch your campaign on a topic or battle of public interest. Discover the new section dedicated to supporters
- Propose your post for the dedicated blog
- Comment on all articles
- Browse the site without advertising
- Receive thematic newsletters
- Read all the Fatto Quotidiano articles 7 days after publication
- 30% discount on the annual subscription to TvLoft and on books from the Paper First publishing house; 20% discount and on products from our online shop
- Sign up for the il Fatto Quotidiano Foundation membership card at the reduced price of €5 (instead of €20)
- Finally, you will receive your digital Membership card and you will be able to take advantage of the advantages dedicated to our Partnerships
DISCOVER ALL THE ADVANTAGES
€60 PER YEAR
(you save €11.88)
- Read all the articles on the site without limits
- Participate live every Thursday at 4.00 pm in the ilfattoquotidiano.it editorial meeting and propose your investigation
- Participate in the discussion forum with the editorial staff and the Director and launch your campaign on a topic or battle of public interest. Discover the new section dedicated to supporters
- Propose your post for the dedicated blog
- Comment on all articles
- Browse the site without advertising
- Receive thematic newsletters
- Read all the Fatto Quotidiano articles 7 days after publication
- 30% discount on the annual subscription to TvLoft and on books from the Paper First publishing house; 20% discount and on products from our online shop
- Sign up for the il Fatto Quotidiano Foundation membership card at the reduced price of €5 (instead of €20)
- Finally, you will receive your digital Membership card and you will be able to take advantage of the advantages dedicated to our Partnerships
DISCOVER ALL THE ADVANTAGES
€149.99 PER YEAR
(instead of €189.99)
- Read all the newspaper articles from the “il Fatto Quotidiano” App or from the website and read all the articles on the website without limits
- Access the complete archive of il Fatto Quotidiano
- Access 4 Scuola del Fatto courses at a truly exclusive price
- Participate live every Thursday at 4.00 pm in the ilfattoquotidiano.it editorial meeting and propose your investigation
- Comment on all articles on ilfattoquotidiano.it
- Browse the site without advertising
- Watch programs exclusively on the TvLoft platform
- Get a 30% discount on books from the Paper First publishing house; and a 20% discount on products in our online shop
- Receive your digital Membership card and take advantage of the benefits dedicated to our Partnerships
- Sign up for the Il Fatto Quotidiano Foundation membership card at the reduced price of €5 (instead of €20)
DISCOVER ALL THE ADVANTAGES
