Popular and cooperative Banks shared industry insights in Rome

(Rome, 15 April 2016) The Italian Association of Popular Banks (Assopopolari) hosted the CIBP General Assembly and Executive Committee meeting in Rome. CIBP President ,Mr. Giovanni De Censi, was honoured to welcome 22 representatives of member organizations from 4 continents at Palazzo Altieri to discuss strategies and future business opportunities.

The date for this assembly was well aligned with the 140th Anniversary of Italian Popular Banks, founded in 1876 by Luigi Luzzati.

Carrying the historical roots in the digital age, 22 legal representatives of the CIBP members discussed the CIBP value proposition and the strategy for the coming years. In addition, they captured the opportunity to share their experience in the cooperative banking business and focussed on the developments in Italy, Germany, Austria, Brazil, France and Canada.

Beside the meeting of the Executive Committee, CIBP President and CIBP Secretary General, Ms. Andrea Karner, met the new President of the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA), Ms. Monique f. Leroux, who is representing the Canadian Desjardins Group within the CIBP Executive Committee to discuss networking opportunities. Their talks focused on innovation and how to improve the collaboration within the cooperative movement in the aim to strengthen and improve their members businesses around the world.

Together with the International Cooperative Summit in Quebec, hosted by Desjardins and ICA, CIBP launched the Global Research on Augmented Collaborative Economy GRACE16, which aims on identifying business opportunities among cooperative banks and cooperative businesses.

The CIBP Executive Committee is composed by the legal representatives of Banco Credicoop Argentina, Austrian Volksbanks, CPH Belgium, Bancoob and Sicredi Brazil, BPCE and FNBP France, DZ Bank, WGZ and BVR Germany. Assopopulari, ICBPI, Banca Popolari di Sonrio and Gruppo Banca Popolari di Bari, Bancha Popolare di Puglia e Basilicata, BCP MMorocco, Bncopopular Spain. As one of the main decision-making bodies of the Confederation, the CIBP Executive Committee meets at least once a year at the premises of one of its members.

With 65 years of industry’s insights, business networking opportunities among 1705 cooperative and popular banks, CIBP is the first international organisation that brings together Popular and Cooperative banking players from five continents. At present, CIBP has members in 10 countries: Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Morocco and Spain.