«Dear Carlo, at a time when the European banking sector faces great challenges and continuous transformation, Intesa Sanpaolo is an anchor of stability. And its CEO, who has led the institution since 2013, was reappointed last April for another three years, as the bank’s top management changes frequently. We can then compare Messina with Angela Merkel, and I assure you that is a compliment.” So yesterday Albrecht F. Schirmacher, president of the international association of economic-financial journalists “The Group 20+1” in Frankfurt, spoke to Carlo Messina, managing director and CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo at the Italian banker awards ceremony.
Confession
Last June, the association awarded Messina the prestigious “European Banker of the Year 2024” award. And yesterday in the Emperor’s Hall in Römer, Frankfurt City Palace, Messina was awarded the award in the presence of more than 200 protagonists of German and European finance, Stephanie Wüst, the deputy mayor and head of Frankfurt’s economic department who welcomed him warmly and the Italian ambassador to Germany Fabrizio Bucci.
Messina like Merkel. Intesa Sanpaolo «anchor of stability» in the country considered the cradle of fiscal stability in Europe. Therefore, the recognition is more than just the banker’s great success, but also a tribute to his vision across Europe and the importance of inclusion. In the heart of Frankfurt, Italy and Germany show themselves in perfect harmony.
“Cooperation”
“Italy and Germany must work together. Create a system. This is a unique moment to work together, and not only because there is a strong correlation between the two economies – said Messina, interviewed by Sole24Ore on the sidelines of the awards ceremony –. The spread of government bonds of the two countries narrowed, and there was an improvement in Italy’s public finances. Public debt is our only weakness, we must reduce it. Italy will exit the EU violation procedure due to excessive deficits and this is very important for our relations with Germany. This is a good, important moment to strengthen our strategic ties with Germany now. This unique moment must be seized.” And then he added: «Germany is a powerful growth engine for our country: when Germany slows down, Italy also slows down, as is happening now. And if the German economy grows again, with investment recovering, the same will happen to Italy. And I believe that Germany now also wants to work more with Italy. Germany, it is worth remembering, supported us with the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan, to help our country overcome the crisis. I have been compared to Angela Merkel in the past. giving this prize, the fantastic comparison really surprised me.”
Ermotti’s compliments
Sergio Ermotti, CEO of UBS, was full of praise in his speech as European Banker Of The Year 2023. «Carlo has proven himself to be a true leader in the European banking sector: a man driven by passion, while being able to make decisions based on deep expertise, extensive experience and an undeniable leadership vision». He then traced back his 38-year long career as a banker from Messina, from corporate finance at Banca Nazionale del Lavoro to Banco Ambrosiano Veneto and then Intesa, where “he preferred long-term strategic vision to short-term profits, always serving the communities in which he operated”. Yesterday’s “courage to make bold decisions such as an unsolicited public exchange offer for UBI Banca, the largest banking operation in Europe in the last ten years”, underlined Ermotti, making it clear that Italy’s fragmented banking sector needs to be consolidated, was also appreciated.
