Cassa Centrale Banca updates Strategic Plan: territorial roots, attention to communities

The Board of Directors of Cassa Centrale Banca has approved the update of the Group Strategic Plan for the period 2025 – 2027 and shared it with the top management of the affiliated banks and controlled companies during the Territorial Assemblies.

The Plan update was developed in full coherence with the vision of the role of the Cooperative Banking Group in the context of the Italian banking system: the value of cooperation as a guide in the identification and declination of industrial developments, attention to the quality of the relationship with Members and Customers and territorial capillarity understood as a key to the development of local communities.

“The affiliated BCCs are the beating heart of our Group and embody, with their widespread presence, the founding values ​​of cooperation: mutuality, responsibility and proximity. In a context in which many banking entities are reducing their physical presence, we choose to invest in the territories, strengthening the network of relationships and services. The 2025–2027 Strategic Plan was created to strengthen this model, making it even more solid, innovative and capable of responding to local challenges with tailor-made tools” states Sandro Bolognesi , CEO of Cassa Centrale Banca.

In Friuli Venezia Giulia there are 4 banks affiliated with the Banking Group: Banca 360 Credito Cooperativo FVG, Credito Cooperativo – Cassa Rurale ed Artigiana del Friuli Venezia Giulia, PrimaCassa – Credito Cooperativo FVG and ZKB Zadružna Kraška Banka Trst Gorica Zadruga – ZKB Credito Cooperativo di Trieste e Gorizia.

The territorial presence of these banks is ensured by the 128 branches 1 present in 96 Municipalities in the provinces of Gorizia, Pordenone, Trieste and Udine. In 34 Municipalities, the affiliated Banks represent the only banking presence, confirming the importance assigned to proximity, in building the relationship with Members and Customers. During 2024, the number of branches remained almost stable, in clear contrast to the dynamics that see a process of reduction of the physical presence on the territory by the rest of the Italian banking system.

Support for the development of local communities is demonstrated by the dynamics of new credit disbursements during 2024, equal to €780 million (+3.0% YoY), which allowed net financing to customers to reach €4.5 billion, representing 9.2% of the Banking Group's total.

At the same time, direct customer deposits of the affiliated Banks of Friuli Venezia Giulia grew last year by +8.4% Y/Y, confirming the trust and quality of the relationship with the Members and Customers of the affiliated Banks, reaching €5.9 billion, equal to 8.3% of the total of the Banking Group.

Indirect collection at the end of December 2024 reached € 2.9 billion with an increase of +11% compared to December 2023.

The set of services is offered to 202 thousand Customers and during 2024 the relationship with over 11 thousand new Customers began, confirming the appreciation of the Relationship Bank model offered by the Banking Group.

Economic and financial projections at the end of 2027 for the affiliated banks of Friuli Venezia Giulia

The results achieved at the end of the previous financial year and the progress of the strategic initiatives developed at the level of individual BCCs and the Banking Group as a whole have allowed us to define, in the update of the Group Strategic Plan for the period 2025 – 2027, economic and financial projections that confirm the growth path of the affiliated Banks serving families and businesses in the area.

Performing customer loans are expected to grow to €4.7 billion (CAGR 24-27: +1.5%). Direct customer funding is expected to reach €6.1 billion (CAGR 24-27: +1.2%).

Indirect collections are expected to increase to €3.5 billion (CAGR 24-27: +5.9%), confirming the centrality of the segment in the revenue diversification process.

Credit quality remains constant, with a Banking Group-level target of a Net NPE ratio CORE of 0.9% and a coverage ratio of impaired loans of 73%.

The interest margin is projected to contract (with a CAGR 24-27: -2.9% at consolidated level), based on the assumptions of a reduction in interest rate levels over the plan period.

Net commissions are expected to grow (with a CAGR 24-27: +3.4% at consolidated level), thanks to strategic initiatives dedicated to commercial development and, in particular, to the wealth management and bancassurance sectors.

Operating costs are projected to increase (with a CAGR 24-27: +3.1% at consolidated level), as a result of the investments planned in the Strategic Plan, particularly in technology and digital transformation.

The cost/income ratio 2 at the Banking Group level is expected to increase to 60%.

The trajectory of continuous capital strengthening is confirmed with a Banking Group-wide target of a Fully Phased Common Equity Tier 1 ratio (CET1) of 33.2%, a value at the top of the national and European banking system.

Strategic Initiatives

The Strategic Plan 2025 – 2027 confirms the key areas of intervention advanced with the 2024 Plan and updates the commitment in terms of investments in the ICT and Security sector to over € 200 million in the three-year period 2025 – 2027.

Cassa Centrale Group launches its ambitious Digital Transformation Strategic Plan 2025 – 2027 , with initiatives designed to support the Group's commercial development.

The goal is to enhance technological innovation to further enhance the relationship with the customer , while maintaining personalized consultancy and proximity to the territory at the center, distinctive characteristics of the 65 BCCs of the Cassa Centrale Group.

In a constantly evolving sector, the service model of the BCCs of the Cassa Centrale Group stands out for its balance between innovation and relationship . Customers will be able to freely choose how to interact with their BCC, alternating in-branch consultancy with the use of new digital channels, such as the Distance Offer (OAD) which will amplify relationship opportunities, guaranteeing maximum flexibility and a personalized experience. In this scenario, Inbank mobile banking will continue to evolve with new features and services, offering increasingly intuitive and complete access.

The Plan also includes digital investments aimed at automating and streamlining processes, including through Artificial Intelligence solutions , as well as the evolution of core banking, IT infrastructures and data analytics .

The Sustainability Plan also continues along the path undertaken in the last three years and renews the Group's ESG objectives , fully integrated into the Strategic Plan:

• progressive reduction of own and financed emissions,
• supporting families and businesses in the ecological transition, Share Capital Euro 952,031,808.00. ivRegistration in the Trento Business Register and Tax Code 00232480228 – Representative of the Cassa Centrale Banca VAT Group – VAT No. 02529020220 Member of the Depositors' Guarantee Fund of the Cooperative Credit and the National Guarantee FundCompany registered in the Banks' Register – ABI 03599

  Parent Company of the Cassa Centrale Banca Cooperative Banking Group, registered in the Register of Banking Groups

• promotion of environmental and social sustainability in the area,
• development of an inclusive and well-being environment for its people. These objectives translate into projects such as the definition of a Transition Plan to support decarbonisation, the consolidation of the offer of financing products and sustainable investment and protection tools, the issuance and placement of “Green Social Sustainable” bonds with customers.