ROME (Reuters) -Italy plans to raise roughly 4 billion euros ($4.4 billion) in 2025 from changes in tax rules for banks, insurance products and business licences for gaming, Rome’s draft budgetary plan (DBP) showed on Wednesday.
The document, sent to the European Commission for approval, estimates higher revenues amounting to 0.168% of GDP as a contribution to consolidating public finances.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the new money-raising scheme was drafted after a “very constructive dialogue” with financial sector stakeholders.
“We don’t want to give the signal that banks are enemies, not at all,” she said speaking to reporters in Brussels.
The Milan share price of Italy’s main banks and insurers, such as Intesa Sanpaolo (OTC:), UniCredit, Monte dei Paschi and Generali (BIT:) barely changed on Wednesday, suggesting no major impact from the measure.
Earlier on Wednesday, Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti told reporters that banks and insurers would contribute to the state finances with “more than 3.5 billion euros” next year.
“I think the affair has been interiorized by the markets, so it goes as it should. The fishermen and workers will be happy after this budget, a little less so the banks,” Giorgetti said.
His deputy Maurizio Leo said the budget would freeze for the next two years deductions related to banks’ tax credits stemming from past losses, known as deferred tax assets, in a move that would temporarily hike taxation on profits.
The Treasury expects to collect 1 billion euros from insurers by changing the payment terms of stamp duties for some insurance policies.
Rome also changed taxation of stock options for managers. “We defer the deduction to the time when there is actual allocation of the shares,” Leo said.
The DBP document said revenues from banks, insurance products and gaming would fall by 0.073% of GDP in 2026 and by 0.096% the following year.
Italy last year shocked markets by imposing a 40% tax on banks’ windfall profits, only to backtrack by limiting the scope of the levy and giving lenders an opt-out clause which meant that in the end it raised zero for state coffers.
($1 = 0.9190 euros)
