Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini on Tuesday accused the European Central Bank of attacking Italy’s banking system, saying its request for local lenders to put aside more money to cover impaired loans could cost 15 billion euros, Trend reports referring to Reuters.
Salvini, who heads the far-right League, said in a statement that the ECB move showed that the EU’s banking union was creating instability and said more transparency was needed to dispel any suspicion the central bank was politically motivated.
Earlier on Tuesday, a source told Reuters the ECB will give the banks it supervises a target date to fully provision for their bad debt. The move surprised some investors and particularly spooked Italian lenders.