Comunicati Stampa - Italia - BFF Banking Group
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BFF acquires a shareholding of 1.25% via a share capital increase by the Italian publishing house known as the Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana fondata da Giovanni Treccani S.P.A. (Institute of the Italian Encyclopaedia founded by Giovanni Treccani).
BFF is pressing ahead with its commitment towards culture, in line with the group's social and sustainability policies.
Milan, 9 January 2023 – BFF Bank S.p.A. – the largest speciality finance operator in Italy – has become a shareholder of the Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana fondata da Giovanni Treccani S.p.A., with a stake of 1.25% of Treccani share capital, through the subscription of a share capital increase.
The transaction is coherent with BFF’s initiatives and strategies of sustainability and public commitment, which include the creation of a museum area within the bank’s new headquarters in Milan, in 2024. This area will play host to the works of Italian artists collected by BFF from the 1980s onwards, which are today the focus of an exhibition currently touring Europe, entitled “Art Factor – The Pop Legacy in Post-War Italian Art” *.
BFF chairman Salvatore Messina stated: “The decision to become a Treccani shareholder – alongside other prestigious public- and private-sector representatives of Italy's cultural and economic fabric – allows our group to enrich its social and sustainability policies, thanks to this engagement with what is one of the main engines in Italy for the production and dissemination of culture. The continual blossoming of BFF's initiatives in the field of art and culture is for us both a source of pride and an embodiment of our sense of responsibility, which is enabling us to give back to the community.”
Franco Gallo, chairman of the Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, stated: “For Treccani, a private company of national importance and a key part of Italy’s culture and its national identity, opening up to new shareholders has great strategic value, allowing us to integrate new forms of expertise into our shareholding structure while helping to consolidate and develop the role of Treccani and its innovative projects.”
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BFF Banking Group
BFF Banking Group is the largest speciality finance provider in Italy and a leading player in Europe for the management and non-recourse factoring of trade receivables owed to suppliers by public-sector organizations; BFF also provides securities services and corporate payment services. The group operates in Italy, Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain. BFF is listed on the Italian Stock Exchange. In 2021 it reported a consolidated Adjusted Net Income of €125.3 million, with a 13.8% Group CET1 ratio at the end of September 2022. www.bff.com
Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana fondata da Giovanni Treccani
Founded by Giovanni Treccani in 1925, the Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana is a private company of national importance. Recognized as a cultural institution pursuant to Italian Law No. 123 of 1980, it operates in the publishing industry. The original mission of the institute involved the compilation and updating of the Enciclopedia Italiana di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti (Italian Encyclopaedia of Science, Literature and Art) and of those works deriving from it, as well as the promotion of humanistic and scientific culture, with a view to meeting requirements relating to education, training, research and social services. Treccani is financially independent and, due to the importance of its cultural role, its chairman is appointed by the Italian President. For some time now, Treccani’s traditional publishing operations have been complemented by its substantial presence in digital publishing and in education and training. www.treccani.it
*More information on the contemporary art project is available here: www.art-factor.eu