The ratings on Italy-based Banche Popolari Unite (BPU) reflect its strong business profile that benefits from good penetration in the wealthiest regions of Italy; an adequate financial profile characterized by strong liquidity; good revenue-generating capacity; adequate asset quality; and weak capitalization. BPU was created from the 2003 merger of Banca Popolare di Bergamo-Credito Varesino and Banca Popolare Commercio e Industria SCRL. The group leverages its favorable geographical coverage (mainly the rich central and northern regions of Italy), loyal customer base, and large deposit base. It concentrates on retail banking, but the loan book is also exposed to midsize and large corporate credit risk. This risk also resides in the loan book of Centrobanca, the group's merchant bank, which represents 12%
