Italian banks are not at a disadvantage internationally: the requirements have been tightened even further for trading in securities and derivatives, which generate less business in Italy. As regards lending to small and medium enterprises, the preferential treatment already applying to the calculation of capital adequacy will remain in place.
In addition, to reduce uncertainty in response to a shock, we need to strengthen those increasingly critical institutions at the core of the system. Because of their systemic importance, they must be held to higher capital, liquidity, and risk-management standards.