The enlargement of distribution networks has proved a strong incentive to decentralizing decision-making for smaller loans. To meet the requirements of control, special organizational units have been created to provide centralized monitoring of loan positions; these maintain continuous contact with the central and branch units engaged in granting loans, mostly through the use of computerized procedures that identify possible anomalies in positions.
The most dynamic banks have supplemented these procedures with profitability indicators for individual borrowers in order to improve their overall risk-return profiles. Some of the more progressive medium-sized banks use internal rating procedures to support their loan portfolio diversification policies and to establish consistent writedown and provisioning criteria.