Mr. Desario reports on growth prospects and implications for supervision of asset management Address by the Director General of the Bank of Italy, Dott. Vincenzo Desario, at the conference “Asset management: insurance companies versus banks” held in Rome on 9/4/98. 1. Introduction The growth of asset management has been a common feature of the financial systems of all the leading industrial countries.
In Italy, the growth has been especially rapid in the last two years, under the influence of both cyclical and structural factors. The professional management of savings has always been a characteristic aspect of financial intermediation. Its scope was originally limited to the management of individual estates and the provision of financial advice.