Banca Teatina

Banca Teatina S.p.A.

Company type	Società per azioni
Industry	Banking
Predecessor	Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia di Chieti S.p.A.
Founded	November 22, 2015 (2015-11-22) (as Nuova Cassa di Risparmio di Chieti S.p.A.)
Defunct	2018 (2018)
Fate	Acquired by UBI Banca
Headquarters	Chieti Scalo , Italy
Area served	Abruzzo
Products	Savings bank services
Parent	UBI Banca (from 2017)

Banca Teatina S.p.A., previously known as Nuova Cassa di Risparmio di Chieti S.p.A., was an Italian savings institution based in Chieti Scalo, Abruzzo. It was established on 22 November 2015 as a successor to the original Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia di Chieti S.p.A., which had been placed under special administration during 2014–2015. On 18 January 2017, the bank was acquired by UBI Banca for a nominal amount.

The original Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia di Chieti underwent a legal transformation in the 1990s, resulting in the creation of the banking foundation Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia di Chieti, which retained majority ownership of the S.p.A. until its collapse in 2015.

History

The institution known as Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia di Chieti was founded in 1938 through the consolidation of Cassa di Risparmio Marrucina (established in 1862) and Cassa di Risparmio di Guardiagrele.

Following the enactment of the Legge Amato in 1992, the bank’s statutory corporation was divided into two entities: Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia di Chieti S.p.A. (Carichieti S.p.A.) and the banking foundation Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia di Chieti ("Fondazione Chieti"). Ownership was distributed with the foundation holding an 80% stake and Cariplo owning the remaining 20%. Cariplo also possessed 20% shares in other Abruzzo-based savings banks, namely Banca Caripe and Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia di Teramo (Tercas). Intesa Sanpaolo, as Cariplo’s successor, maintained these minority holdings until Carichieti’s insolvency in 2014.

Insolvency

In 2014, Carichieti entered into special administration. According to its 2013 financial statements, the bank reported shareholders' equity amounting to €200 million and a Tier 1 capital ratio of 8.80%. However, following an asset quality review conducted by the Bank of Italy, the bank was required to increase its provisions for non-performing loans.

Initially, in 2015, the Italian Deposit Guarantee Fund (Fondo Interbancario di Tutela dei Depositi) planned to intervene to support Carichieti along with three other banks under special administration. This plan was later overtaken by actions from the Italian National Resolution Fund, which recapitalized Carichieti with €141 million as part of a broader €2 billion capital injection. The European Commission had previously deemed an earlier FITD bailout of Banca Tercas as state aid, mandating bail-in procedures under the EU Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive.

The National Resolution Fund allocated approximately €1.7 billion to cover losses at Banca Marche, Banca Etruria, Carife, and Carichieti. After splitting assets into performing ("good") and non-performing ("bad") banks, the original institution was wound down; shareholders and holders of subordinated bonds were completely bailed-in. As a result, Fondazione Chieti’s net asset value declined sharply from €89 million to €11 million by late 2015 due to share write-downs.

On 3 May 2016, Decree-Law No. 59/2016 was enacted to reimburse retail investors (up to €100,000) who had purchased bonds before 12 June 2014—the date when the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive became effective. This legislation addressed widespread criticism concerning bail-ins affecting junior investors, a common issue among Italian banks that had sold high-risk bonds to their customers. The refund initiative, known as Fondo di solidarietà, is administered by FITD.

Nuova Carichieti / Banca Teatina

On 22 November 2015, the institution underwent a division into a "good bank" and a "bad bank," resulting in the foundation relinquishing control over the entity, which retained solely share capital and subordinated debt. The newly formed bank was capitalized with €141 million in share capital and had an estimated Tier 1 capital ratio of 9%. Non-performing loans were consolidated into a single "bad bank" named REV - Gestione Crediti, which was jointly held with Carife, Banca Etruria, and Banca Marche. This consolidation process concluded in January 2016. The restructuring complied with the EU Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive, with the Bank of Italy serving as the national resolution authority under the Single Resolution Mechanism. As of 31 December 2015, CariChieti reported net equity amounting to €117 million alongside a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 9.53%.

On 12 January 2017, UBI Banca presented a binding offer of a nominal €1 for the acquisition of Nuova CariChieti, Nuova Banca Etruria, and Nuova Banca Marche. Prior to this acquisition, the group required balance sheet cleansing through the sale of non-performing loans to Atlante II and Credito Fondiario, alongside a recapitalization initially projected at €450 million but later increased to €713 million. The offer was approved on 18 January. The deal was finalized on 10 May, after which Nuova CariChieti was rebranded as Banca Teatina (effective from September). Upon closing, UBI Banca announced intentions to integrate the three banks into its corporate structure.

Banking foundation

Previously operating as a subsidiary of Fondazione Chieti – Abruzzo e Molise, the bank was separated from its principal shareholder and continues to function as a charitable organization. Following the comprehensive bail-in of all equity holdings, the foundation's net assets decreased significantly to €11 million by 2016, down from €89 million recorded in 2014.

See also

• Savings banks originating from Abruzzo provincial capitals:
  • Banca Tercas – merged into Banca Popolare di Bari
  • Banca Caripe – merged into Banca Popolare di Bari
  • Cassa di Risparmio della Provincia dell'Aquila – merged into BPER Banca