The titles of the Italian banks, in strong fall on Tuesday, resumed the colors on Wednesday morning on the Milan Stock Exchange, after the decision of the Giorgia Meloni government to put a ceiling on the tax on their “surpluses”. “In order to preserve the stability of banking institutions,” the decree establishes “a ceiling for the contribution, which cannot exceed 0.1% of the total assets” of a bank, the Ministry of Finance announced Tuesday night. Economy, eager to calm the stock market. market storm
The surprising decision of the right-wing and far-right government coalition to tax the “excess profits” of the banks generated by the rise in interest rates with a 40% tax had caused the collapse of the values of the financial sector on the Stock Market Last Tuesday. Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit thus lost 8.6% and 5.9% respectively at the close. Monte dei Paschi di Siena fell 10.8%, Bper Banca 10.9% and Banco Bpm 9%.
On Wednesday morning, Intesa Sanpaolo was up 2.3% and competitor Unicredit was up 4% around 10:30am (0830GMT), the same as other banking stocks.
Total cost to banks cut in half
Italian banks have seen their interest income soar as a result of the rise in interest rates, without increasing the remuneration of their clients’ current accounts in the same proportions. Banks that “already adjusted their rates” by reducing the gap between deposit rates and current account remuneration “will not be significantly affected” by the tax, the Economy Ministry promised Tuesday night.
After the ministry’s intervention, economists have significantly lowered their estimates for tax revenue. Limiting the contribution to 0.1% of assets “drastically reduces the impact of the tax,” Jefferies analysts commented on Wednesday, who now estimate the total cost to banks at 2.5 billion euros compared to the previous 4.9 billion. The tax on the “excess profits” of the banks, which must be settled before June 2024, will affect the accounting years of 2022 or 2023.
Source: BFM TV
