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| Legge Amato | |
|---|---|
| Name | Amato law |
| Official name | Law 218/1990 |
| Enacted by | Italian Parliament |
| Date enacted | 1990 |
| Signed by | Giulio Andreotti |
| Sponsor | Carlo Azeglio Ciampi; Giuliano Amato |
| Status | enacted |
Legge Amato is a 1990 Italian law that reorganized the structure of Italian banking by converting public banking institutions into joint-stock companies and creating banking foundations, reshaping institutions such as Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale, Cassa di Risparmio delle Provincie Lombarde, and Banco Ambrosiano. The measure was promoted amid pressures from European integration, market liberalization, and financial modernization involving actors like European Commission, Bank for International Settlements, and International Monetary Fund. It played a central role in aligning Italy with directives from the European Community and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision.
The reform responded to developments following the Single European Act, negotiations within the European Economic Community, and debates in the Italian Parliament influenced by politicians including Giuliano Amato, Giulio Andreotti, and Carlo Azeglio Ciampi. Pressure from supranational entities such as the European Commission and technical guidance from the Bank for International Settlements intersected with domestic crises exemplified by failures linked to Banco Ambrosiano and challenges confronting Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze. Financial sector reform advocates referenced comparative experiences from United Kingdom deregulatory trends, the Glass–Steagall Act debates in the United States, and privatization episodes in France and Spain to justify structural change. The law aimed to separate charitable, social, and industrial investment activities historically performed by savings banks like Monte dei Paschi di Siena from commercial banking activities managed by entities such as Credito Italiano and Banca Commerciale Italiana.
The statute mandated transformation of public law banking entities into joint-stock companies, creating corporate forms akin to Società per Azioni and establishing independent banking foundations modelled after foundations in Germany and France. It allowed asset transfers between newly formed banks and foundations, regulated shareholding limits, and introduced corporate governance standards influenced by recommendations from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Basel Committee. The law included provisions on capital adequacy that paralleled rules from the Basel I framework and anticipated future Basel II discussions, while enabling restructuring tools used in later consolidations involving groups such as UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo. It set mechanisms for privatization comparable to measures in the Privatisation Commission debates and for recapitalization echoing approaches used during restructurings of Banco di Napoli and Banca Nazionale del Lavoro.
The reform accelerated consolidation in Italy, contributing to the emergence of large banking groups including UniCredit, Intesa Sanpaolo, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, BPER Banca, and Mediobanca. It altered the ownership landscape, increasing participation by institutional investors such as BlackRock, Vanguard Group, and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti while diminishing direct municipal and provincial control seen in entities like Cassa di Risparmio di Torino and Cassa di Risparmio di Roma. The creation of foundations produced new financial actors such as Fondazione Cariplo and Fondazione Monte dei Paschi di Siena that became significant shareholders and philanthropic sponsors of cultural institutions like La Scala, Uffizi Gallery, and the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze. Market integration effects manifested through cross-border acquisitions involving Santander, BNP Paribas, and Deutsche Bank and through compliance with European Central Bank supervisory frameworks and Single Supervisory Mechanism expectations.
Enacted in 1990, the law prompted waves of conversions and asset reorganizations throughout the 1990s and 2000s, coinciding with privatizations and mergers such as the formation of Sanpaolo IMI and later consolidation into Intesa Sanpaolo in 2007. Key milestones include the 1991 institutional restructurings of several regional savings banks, the mid-1990s listing of newly corporatized banks on stock exchanges such as Borsa Italiana, and the 2000s consolidation under groups like UniCredit Group following international acquisitions involving HypoVereinsbank and Bank Austria. Regulatory follow-ups involved interventions by Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa and later supervision by the European Central Bank; crisis-era interventions referenced rescue operations related to Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena and recapitalizations assisted by European Stability Mechanism-era policies.
Critics argued the law facilitated oligopolistic consolidation, enabling concentration among groups such as UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo while reducing local control in provinces like Siena and Bergamo. Commentators from institutions including Italian Competition Authority and academics from Bocconi University and Luigi Bocconi highlighted conflicts of interest involving foundations holding stakes in banks while funding cultural projects at institutions like Fondazione Giovanni Agnelli. Legal disputes arose over asset valuation, tax treatment, and governance, involving courts such as the Corte Costituzionale and administrative challenges appealed to the Consiglio di Stato. Financial episodes including the collapse of Banco Ambrosiano and later strains at Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena fed political debates in the Italian Parliament and inquiries led by parliamentary committees and the Court of Auditors.
Long-term effects include transformation of Italy’s banking ownership structure, the entrenchment of banking foundations like Fondazione Carisbo as regional patrons, and the integration of Italian banks into pan-European groups such as Santander and BNP Paribas. The law influenced subsequent regulatory reforms addressing corporate governance, systemic risk, and anti–money laundering measures coordinated with Financial Action Task Force standards and European Banking Authority guidance. Debates continue over the social role of foundations, tax privileges linked to foundation endowments, and market competition overseen by bodies such as the European Commission Directorate-General for Competition and the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance. The statute remains a reference point in analyses by scholars at University of Bologna, Sapienza University of Rome, and think tanks including ISPI on the political economy of Italian financial reform.
Category:1990 in Italy Category:Banking law