Intesa Expects to Save EUR675 Million a Year After Headcount Reduction

   By Pietro Lombardi 
 

Intesa Sanpaolo SpA (ISP.MI) is aiming for savings of about 675 million euros ($800.2 million) annually as part of a job-reduction plan related to the rescue of two regional banks, the lender said Thursday.

The savings will kick in as of 2021, Intesa said, adding that it will book a EUR45 million charge related to the reduction plan in the fourth quarter of 2017.

The bank said that it is prepared to accept the roughly 7,500 applications for voluntary exits it received under a solidarity allowance program, with the final exits to take place by June 30, 2020. The total number of voluntary exits comes to about 9,000 when including the approximately 1,500 people who fulfil pension requirements, it added.

Intesa will also hire about 1,500 people.

Earlier this year, the lender took part in the rescue of two Italian regional banks that went bust.

The Italian government liquidated the regional banks' bad assets, while Intesa Sanpaolo bought the good assets for one euro. The deal included a public contribution to Intesa of about EUR3.5 billion to offset the impact of the transaction on its capital ratios.

Write to Pietro Lombardi at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 21, 2017 04:30 ET (09:30 GMT)

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