Third quarter 2024 results: statement by CEO Carlo Messina

“The results of the first nine months of 2024 reaffirmed Intesa Sanpaolo’s position as a European leader: our market value now places us alongside BNP Paribas and Santander, despite these banks having considerably larger balance sheets.

“For 2024, we expect net income to exceed €8.5 billion, driven by significant actions aimed at further enhancing the sustainability of our performance. The net income target for 2025 has been raised to around €9 billion, reflecting the substantial organic growth potential of our bank.

“In the first nine months of 2024, net income was €7.2 billion, with €2.4 billion generated in the third quarter alone. Of the €5 billion in cash dividends accrued this year, around €3 billion will be distributed to shareholders in November as an interim dividend.

“Intesa Sanpaolo has developed a unique model in Europe, built on the established leadership of its Divisions serving households and businesses, a significant focus on Wealth Management, Protection, and Advisory, efficiently-managed international activities, technologically advanced digital offerings, its “Zero NPL Bank” status, and a world-class ESG profile.

“Our strengths—high profitability, sustainable results, solid capital, and a low risk profile—enable us to play a unique role in supporting Italy’s real economy and social landscape.

“In the first nine months of 2024, we extended over €30 billion in medium- and long-term loans to Italian households and businesses. Our people in Italy received more than €4 billion in compensation. As of September 30, 2024, dividends already accrued amount to €5 billion, with 40% of this total going to Italian families and shareholder foundations. Our tax contribution in this period stands at €4.6 billion, an increase of €700 million compared to the first nine months of 2023.

“Intesa Sanpaolo is an institution that serves the country: we are implementing the largest social cohesion project, promoting a more equitable society in a structural and concrete way. In addition to the €1 billion provided between 2018 and 2021, we are now executing a €1.5 billion program through 2027, involving 1,000 of our professionals, with over €500 million already deployed.

“At the core of our strategies and growth outlook are our clients, their trust in our bank’s stability and leadership, and their close relationships with our professionals who provide them with credit and advisory services. Listening to our clients’ needs remains our priority.

“While the interest rate landscape is evolving, we are well-positioned to navigate these changes successfully, thanks to our highly diversified business model and the savings entrusted to us by families and businesses, which reached around €1.4 trillion as of September 30, 2024, up by over €135 billion from a year earlier.

“We lead the Eurozone in revenue growth and in the ratio of commissions and insurance activity to total revenue.

“Our strength is further bolstered by approximately 17,000 wealth management advisors—set to grow to 20,000 by 2027. We have identified €100 billion of clients’ financial assets that can drive growth of our asset management activities. The creation of a unified wealth management structure enhances growth and streamlines the operational framework of our product factories.

“Our rigorous cost management—all while increasing tech investments—has delivered our best-ever nine-month cost/income ratio at 39.1%.

“Historically low NPL inflows have brought the annualized cost of risk to 25 basis points, accompanied by increased coverage.

“Our robust capital generation continues to strengthen us: as of September 30, our CET1 ratio stands at 13.9%. This significant capital surplus allows us to consider significant additional distributions to shareholders.

“Technological innovation is a cornerstone of our success: we lead in Europe, with €3.5 billion invested in IT and approximately 2,250 IT specialists hired to date.

“We are committed to tackling climate change: from 2021 to September 30, 2024, we provided nearly €63 billion in new financing to support the Green Economy and ecological transition, including over €11 billion from 2022 directed at the circular economy. Additionally, our energy sourcing in Italy now comes entirely from renewable sources.

“The professionalism of our people is a key factor in achieving solid, sustainable results for all stakeholders, and to them, we extend our deepest gratitude.”

31 October 2024