The health of Italy’s banks will be evaluated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2013, it has been revealed.
Giuseppe Mussari, head of the Italian Banking Association, made the announcement, explaining that the IMF will appraise the country’s banks through its Financial Sector Assessment Program.
A spokesperson for the IMF said that this program delivers a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of a country’s financial sector and is mandatory for the 25 nations that have “systemically important financial sectors”, of which Italy is one.
This will be of interest to professionals considering relocating to Italy next year, as one of the pressing issues facing many budding expats is choosing a reliable foreign bank.
However, those wary of Italy’s banks can, for example, opt for an international account with a bank from their home country. A UK resident looking to move overseas can find ideal solutions with HSBC or Barclays to name but a few.
Nevertheless, that shouldn’t put expats off from banking in Italy. They can derive comfort in the fact that Italy has more experience than any other country in terms of banking.
Barclays, which itself has been around for a very long time (founded 1690), has stated that the first bank of the modern era was founded in Genoa approximately 600 years ago. That is history you can’t buy.