They export more, invest more in the digital and green transition and are more attentive to the well-being of the territories and human capital. This is the identikit of companies that have a strong relationship (members or customers) with the Cooperative Credit Banks and Rural Banks (BCC), from which they draw support to sustain their investments in ESG matters which also translate into better competitiveness.

28% of the turnover of these companies is generated abroad (compared to 24% of other entrepreneurial realities that do not have a BCC as a banking partner); 23% have invested or will invest in the Dual Transition (ecological and digital) in the three-year period 2023-2025 (compared to 13%); 29% focus on training their staff to improve their capacity for initiative (compared to 18% of other companies); 30% focus on product quality, the ties with the territory and the enhancement of the Made in Italy brand to differentiate themselves and increase customers and sales (compared to 24% of other companies). Also for this reason, the companies served by BCCs show a 12% higher probability than other companies of
achieving revenue growth.

This is what emerges from a survey promoted by Federcasse, the Italian Federation of Cooperative Credit Banks and Rural Banks, and carried out by the Study Center of the Chambers of Commerce “Guglielmo Tagliacarne” on a sample of 3,100 small-sized manufacturing and service companies (between 5 and 49 employees).

More specifically, according to the study, BCC client companies have an overall ESG performance that is 27% higher than other companies, with peaks of 33% in the South and 52% in the social sector (S). These companies are also more likely to invest in green to improve the process/product, 29% have already done so in 2020-2022 (against 23% of other companies) and 42% will do so by 2025 (against 31%). Meanwhile, 36% have already invested in 4.0 technologies in 2020-2022 (against 26%) and 37% intend to do so within
this year (against 25%).

But there is also an effect on the greater ability of these companies to be cohesive, that is, to create a “network” with other companies and with entities active in the territory: 28% declare that the banking system that belongs to the Cooperative Credit facilitates/strengthens the relations of their company with other stakeholders, double that of other companies (14%). And almost half of the economic performance overtaking of their client companies over others seems to be attributable to this “cohesive push” of the BCCs: 34% have in fact recorded an increase in 2024 in turnover (against 26%) and 18% of employees (against 13%).

“These results, emphasizes the President of Federcasse Augusto dell’Erba – are to be put in relation to the validity of the cooperative and mutualistic bank model that sees in the confirmed counter-cyclical function, in the strong territorial roots and in continuing to exercise the ‘relationship credit’ important elements to trigger processes of productive innovation, functional to the respect of the ESG requirements for the smallest entrepreneurial realities and representing an evident competitive factor”.

“In a period of profound uncertainty in which the traditional canons of globalization are being profoundly redefined – underlines the General Director of the Tagliacarne Study Center Gaetano Fausto Esposito – the study shows that territorial proximity continues to represent in our country an effective element of anchoring and economic performance for businesses if it is accompanied by a relationship with banks capable of integrating credit aspects with those of sustainability”.

Loans to businesses – divided by type – from the 218 Italian Cooperative Credit Banks, Rural Banks and Raiffeisen Banks (BCC) represent 24.2% of loans to the “accommodation and catering” (tourism) sector, 23.5% to agricultural and agro-industry businesses; 24.00% to artisan and small-scale manufacturing businesses; 15.8% to real estate and construction businesses; 15.6% to non-profit institutions. The network of BCC branches exceeds 4,090, 31% of which are located in internal areas. In 780 municipalities, BCCs are the only banking entity present. In another 510 Municipalities they have only one “competitor” bank.

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