Collaboration agreement with Banco BPM, BNL Gruppo BNP Paribas, Intesa Sanpaolo, UBI Banca, UniCredit

Milan, 4 March 2019 – A collaboration agreement between Confindustria Lombardia and Banco BPM, BNL Gruppo BNP Paribas, Intesa Sanpaolo, UBI Banca and UniCredit was signed in Milan today.

The agreement, the result of the Credit project launched by Lombardy's industrialists, aims to facilitate access for SMEs—particularly those that have been unable to finance their growth and development—to bank financing instruments dedicated to investment, especially those intended for supply chains and Industry 4.0.

The press conference for the presentation and signing of the agreement was attended by Stefano Barrese, Head of the Banca dei Territori Division at Intesa Sanpaolo, Andrea Munari, CEO of BNL and Head of the BNP Paribas Group in Italy, Victor Massiah, CEO of UBI Banca, Luca Manzoni, Head of Corporate at Banco BPM, Giovanni Solaroli, Regional Director for Lombardy at UniCredit, and the President of Confindustria Lombardia, Marco Bonometti.

Marco Bonometti, in presenting the agreement, stated: “It is important to send a signal of support to the production sector and thereby attempt to rekindle the confidence essential for facing the challenges ahead. To support the competitiveness of businesses in our region during this delicate economic phase, Confindustria Lombardia has launched the Credit Project with the banking system, which, by bringing together the Lombard industrial system and the five main credit institutions, aims to facilitate access to credit, enabling even small businesses to keep pace with innovation and the renewal of their facilities.”

“Globalisation dictates that not only must the individual company be competitive, but the entire system must be as well. This also serves to demonstrate the attention the Lombardy system pays to those who work and produce. To compete globally –

continues Marco Bonometti – Lombardy must focus strongly on the modernisation of high-potential production supply chains, in order to leverage cross-sector technological drivers and encourage cross-pollination between sectors for accessible investment projects. Membership in one of these supply chains, where there are so-called champion companies, must in some way also benefit the small and medium-sized enterprises that contribute to the success of that supply chain.”

“The added value lies in having brought together the five main banking institutions—Banco BPM, BNL Gruppo BNP Paribas, Intesa Sanpaolo, UBI Banca, and UniCredit—which, thanks to their commitment and the proposals that emerged from the coordination with Lombardy’s productive territories through the local associations of Confindustria Lombardia, by regionalising the coordination of local supply chains, have found sustainable solutions to support businesses,” concluded the President of Confindustria Lombardia.

The Regional Framework Collaboration Agreement, aimed at promoting investment by Lombard companies through the territorial associations of Confindustria Lombardia and the banks' local branches, provides for the definition of specific agreements with each individual bank regarding:

- the most suitable instruments to encourage and support SME investment, with particular attention to leveraging their membership in champion supply chains and their credit portfolios as elements to improve access to financing;

- joint initiatives for the concrete implementation of the Agreement at a local level, with the aim of raising awareness among member companies about the opportunities offered by the products that will be jointly identified, in compliance with current legislation and regulations.

Confindustria Lombardia reserves the right to review the implementation of the project in the various Lombard provinces over the coming months.

Attachments

• cs_accordoConfLomb-banche_4mar2019.pdf
• 190304 Accordo CFL - Istituti di credito con loghi da firmare_def1.pdf