Banca Tirrenica

Banca Tirrenica S.p.A.

Company type	Società per azioni
Industry	Financial services
Predecessor	Nuova Banca dell'Etruria e del Lazio S.p.A.
Founded	November 22, 2015 (2015-11-22) in Arezzo, Italy
Defunct	November 27, 2017 (2017-11-27)
Fate	Merged into UBI Banca
Headquarters	Arezzo , Italy
Area served	Central Western Italy (Tyrrhenian and Etruria areas)

Banca Tirrenica S.p.A.—previously known as Nuova Banca dell'Etruria e del Lazio S.p.A.—was an Italian financial institution based in Arezzo, Tuscany. It was reconstituted on 22 November 2015 as the good bank successor to Banca Popolare dell'Etruria e del Lazio (BPEL) and subsequently acquired by UBI Banca on 18 January 2017 for a symbolic price.

The designations Tyrrhenian and Etruria denote the Central Western Italian area where the bank operated.

Banca Popolare dell'Etruria

The bank originated as Banca Mutua Popolare Aretina on 16 April 1881 in Arezzo and expanded its footprint through several acquisitions: on 18 December 1971, it merged with Banca Popolare Senese (established 1865 in Siena) and Banca Popolare della Provincia di Livorno, adopting the name Banca Popolare dell'Etruria. It further incorporated Banca Popolare di Montepulciano (1972), Banca Popolare di Pontevalleceppi (Perugia, 1982), Banca Popolare di Cagli (1985), and Banca Popolare di Gualdo Tadino (1987).

Banca Popolare dell'Etruria e del Lazio

On 31 December 1988, the merger with Banca Popolare dell'Alto Lazio (established in 1974) created Banca Popolare dell'Etruria e del Lazio. In 1990, it absorbed Banca Cooperativa di Capraia Montelupo e Vitolini. The bank was listed on Borsa Italiana in 1998 under the ticker PEL.

In 2006, Banca Etruria acquired a controlling interest in Banca Federico Del Vecchio, achieving full ownership by 2008. That same year, Banca Popolare Lecchese joined the group before being sold in 2015. In mid-2014, the institution transitioned from a co-operative society () to a joint-stock company ().

Insolvency

At the beginning of 2015, the Ministry of Economy and Finance placed the bank under special administration. The financial statements for 2013 reported shareholders' equity of €632 million and a Tier 1 capital ratio of 6.6% according to Basel II standards. By mid-2014, this ratio declined to 6.1% under Basel III rules, falling short of the Bank of Italy’s minimum requirement of 7%.

On 17 November 2015, €302 million worth of non-performing loans were sold without recourse to Credito Fondiario (Fonspa). A capital increase exceeding €2 billion was planned for Banca Etruria and three other banks (€426 million allocated to Banca Etruria) via the Fondo Interbancario di Tutela dei Depositi, pending regulatory consent.

However, on 22 November 2015, the Italian National Resolution Fund intervened with approximately €2 billion in recapitalization under the EU Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive, with Bank of Italy acting as the resolution authority. The bank’s assets were divided into performing and non-performing segments; the original entity was wound up, resulting in total loss for shareholders and subordinated bondholders due to bail-in procedures.

An additional €1.7 billion was injected to cover deficits across all four rescued banks.

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 marking adoption of the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive—addressing concerns about bail-in impacts on retail bondholders. This reimbursement mechanism, called Fondo di solidarietà, is administered by FITD.

Nuova Banca Etruria / Banca Tirrenica

On 22 November 2015, the viable segment of the original bank was separated to form Nuova Banca dell'Etruria e del Lazio S.p.A., which commenced operations with a Tier 1 capital ratio of 9% and a share capital amounting to €442 million. Non-performing exposures were moved to a collective "bad bank" named REV - Gestione Crediti, which also received assets from Carichieti, Carife, and Banca delle Marche.

Subsequently, on 18 December 2015, Nuova Banca Etruria divested a 54.212% holding in Banca Popolare Lecchese to a private equity fund overseen by Oaktree Capital Management through BPL Holdco. This investor recapitalized the institution, securing an 84.9% controlling interest. By the close of 2015, the audited consolidated Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio for Nuova Banca dell'Etruria e del Lazio stood at 11.1%.

On 12 January 2017, UBI Banca placed a nominal bid of €1 for Nuova Banca Etruria along with Nuova CariChieti and Nuova Banca Marche. This offer was conditional upon the cleanup of their balance sheets via the sale of non-performing loans to Atlante II and Credito Fondiario (Fonspa), as well as a recapitalization effort by the National Resolution Fund, initially estimated at €450 million but ultimately reaching €713 million. The proposal received approval on 18 January.

The transaction concluded on 10 May 2017, at which point Nuova Banca Etruria was rebranded as Banca Tirrenica. Concurrently, a plan was announced to merge the three banks into UBI Banca. This absorption merger was completed on 27 November 2017, fully integrating Banca Tirrenica into UBI Banca’s framework.