5  BIS Review 134/1999  In their risk management procedures, Italian banks are increasingly resorting to models that measure expected losses; they use the results in deciding whether to grant loans and in reviewing credit lines. The distinction between the units that calculate ratings, those that are involved in marketing and those that perform control functions appears to be well drawn.
Nonetheless, the integration of the customer-classification systems of the different components of banking groups is not entirely satisfactory. Medium-sized banks, of which one of the strengths has always been their specialized territorial knowledge and entrenchment in the local economic tissue, are also making important changes in their credit risk management procedures.