Italy - The Banker

Italy exemplifies everything that is wrong with Europe - poor government finances, stultifying bureaucracy and rising labour costs. Can it sort itself out? Silvia Pavoni, an Italian national who lives in the UK, takes a long, hard look.

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Italy's philanthropic foundations remain significant shareholders in the country's banks, which has helped them ease their way through the economic crisis and maintain a long-term growth strategy. Writer David Lane

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Alessandro Profumo, Chief executive of Unicredit

UniCredit, the Italian bank with a significant presence in Europe, is back on track following a €4bn rights issue to fund loan demand in eastern Europe. Its chief executive explains how the company's diversified business model is now giving it an advantage over its competitors. Writer Brian Caplen

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UniCredit: CEE strategy now paying dividends

In early 2009, shares in Austrian and Italian banks were pummelled by investors fearing that their exposure to central and eastern Europe would threaten balance sheets. Now they are fighting back, and staying safely in profit. Writer Philip Alexander

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Alessandro Profumo, UniCredit

Italian banks’ cautious approach has distanced them from the risky instruments and products at the heart of the economic crisis, yet prudence is more important than ever if they are to support the country’s ailing industries. Writer David Lane in Rome, Milan and Siena.

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Paulo Fiorentino, deputy CEO, UniCredit

Two years of consolidation have transformed the landscape of Italian banking – and in the process the country’s financial institutions have become experts in extracting maximum value from merging companies. Writer David Lane.

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Gianni Franco Papa, Ukrsotsbank (USB)

Italy’s leading light in eastern Europe, UniCredit has ambitious plans after buying into one of the region’s most dynamic markets with its purchase of Ukraine’s Ukrsotsbank, writes Philip Alexander.

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