Among the direct investments in ‘shares and participating interests’, those in listed shares account for 2.4 per cent of financial wealth, half of the observed euro-area average. However, investment in participating interests, usually focusing on small, unlisted firms, is significant.
This portfolio composition is largely a reflection of the structure of Italy’s productive sector, characterized by numerous small firms, where owners and managers frequently coincide, and by the relatively limited number of listed companies. Italy’s market capitalization-toGDP ratio is less than 25 per cent, compared with almost 100 per cent in France, 50 per cent in Germany and 40 per cent in Spain.