... Sanpaolo S.p.A.'s (IntesaSP) ratings benefit from leading domestic franchises in various market segments. IntesaSP's company profile has helped the group generate better profitability than domestic peers in a challenging operating environment. The ratings also reflect the bank's resilient capitalisation and robust funding, but also its asset quality, which is weak compared with international peers, and a high level of unreserved impaired loans that weighs on capitalisation. Diversified Revenue: IntesaSP's good record of execution and its diversified revenues, which include a high portion of fee income, differentiate the bank domestically by generating consistent profitability and make it more resilient to the low-interest-rate environment than its domestic peers. Asset Quality Is Main Weakness: Asset quality compares well domestically but remains weak when compared internationally, despite some recent improvements. Together with a reduced...
