Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo has launched a new branch in Istanbul, to focus on corporate investment banking. The representative office of Intesa Sanpaolo has been in Turkey since June 2014, and provided one billion euro credits for its clients. The bank decided to expand its operations in Turkey and turned the representative office to the first branch in the country, and it is the only Italian banking group today with a directly operational corporate branch in Turkey. During the press conference held yesterday in Istanbul attending by the top officials of the bank, the group underlined their commitment to enterprises that are building a presence in Turkey, and to trade and financial relationships between Turkey and Italy.

The group managers also stated that this branch will be the first of many to follow. "With the strong fiscal system Turkey presents, we are willing to grow in Turkey without setting limits," said Marcello Sala, executive Vice Chairman of the Management Board of Intesa Sanpaolo. "Turkey has identified among the primary goals of its G20 presidency the crucial role SMEs play in the economy, in the country and internationally," said Sala.

"Intesa Sanpaolo strongly supports topics such as the optimization of lending - especially to the SMEs - and related financial regulation, and is ready to share its extensive experience in this field in Turkey for the benefit of bilateral relations, as well as trade and investment flows between the two countries. The invitation to Intesa Sanpaolo to be an active part of the G20, the advisory group for the decisions of the G20, is certainly to be read in that context," he added. "Intesa Sanpaolo's Istanbul branch is already the hub of economic flow between the two countries, and will be key for the delivery of operational know-how to support SMEs and large companies in their activities -Italian, Turkish and international," Sala concluded.

Intesa Sanpaolo is a banking group that was formed by the merger of Banca Intesa and Sanpaolo IMI. Intesa Sanpaolo is among the top banking groups in the eurozone, with a market capitalisation of 52.9 billion euros.

"For Intesa Sanpaolo, the Istanbul branch represents a long-awaited return to a market that has always been fundamental to us," said Gaetano Micciche;, Managing Director and Head of the Corporate and Investment Banking division of Intesa Sanpaolo. "Our new Istanbul branch will enable Intesa Sanpaolo to bring its experience as a global partner in banking and financial services, advice and assistance to enterprises that are planning to grow or to enter Turkey. We are convinced of the importance of being present in a crucial market for trade and investment flow between Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia. This branch will be able to take advantage of the synergies with our other banking facilities in Italy and abroad, and at the same time, it will enrich our know-how, and enable us to provide more personalized services to our Italian, Turkish or foreign client-companies," he added.