ROMA (ITALPRESS) – The Board of Directors of the Institute for Sports and Cultural Credit, chaired by President Beniamino Quintieri, approved the draft Financial Statements 2025, submitted by Managing Director and General Director Antonella Baldino, which will be submitted to the approval of the Shareholders’ Meeting. The 2025 financial year marks the start of the new 2025-2030 strategic cycle, in which ICSC strengthens its position as a public development bank specialized in the support of the fields of Sport and Culture. More than 1 billion euros of new investments activated with a leverage effect of 2.5x – higher than the target of the Strategic Plan fixed at 1.8x – confirming the Bank’s ability to mobilize additional resources for the benefit of the reference sectors. The operational activity has allowed the financing of over 500 initiatives and infrastructure projects, characterized by an average Social Return on Investment (SROI) of 4x and social benefits estimated in more than 5 billion euros, with concrete impact on employment, territorial cohesion, urban regeneration.
The economic-financial performance of the financial year highlights significant progress along all major strategic guidelines: asset consolidation, improvement of asset quality, risk profile, growth of operating volumes. In particular, in the course of 2025 there is an acceleration in the rate of growth of new loans (+10% on an annual basis), that reach 600 million euros, maximum historical for the Bank, to confirm the ability to expand the customer base and to support initiatives of greater size and complexity, in line with the directors of the Strategic Plan. The growth of funding to the Sport sector (+13% yoy, 480 million euros) consolidates the role of ICSC as a systemic partner of the sector, strengthening market leadership in support of both major strategic infrastructure projects and initiatives for the development and redevelopment of the proximity plant. In the context of the cultural and creative industry, the Bank highlights an even more dynamic performance, with an increase of 21.8% on an annual basis, to a value of 108.8 million euros, a sign of a growing penetration in the sector through a selective approach focused on initiatives of greater impact for the territories.
In the course of the year, ICSC has expanded its strategic position in favour of territorial development, confirming the ability to accompany the audience of reference stakeholders in an integrated and specialized manner. In particular, it increases the activity of support to the investment policies of the Territorial Entities (+16% yoy in terms of new uses) also through specialized services of advisory and management of public funds. With regard to enterprises and non-profit operators, there is an expansion of the credit lines (+23% yoy) dedicated to the promotion and development of high socio-economic impact initiatives in the areas of reference. Particularly significant is the financing of infrastructure projects, which experience a growth of 36% on an annual basis, thanks also to structured interventions in complementarity with other financial instruments (national, regional and private) in a perspective of financial leverage and optimization of the resources available for the territory. The composition of the new funding is mainly maintained in the medium-long term (89%), in line with the approach from ICSC’s “patient investor” oriented to the support of projects in social infrastructure with multiannual investment horizon. In the current economic and geopolitical context, this structure gives greater patrimonial stability, reducing exposure to short-term volatility and ensuring greater predictability in risk profile management, in support of liquidity planning consistent with strategic objectives.
The strengthening of medium-long-term financing capacity is the result of a structural strategy aimed at consolidating the position of the Bank on the capital market, pursuing two complementary objectives: to optimize liquidity management and mobilize institutional capital to be allocated to social infrastructure. The placement of a second social bond of 500 million euros to 5 years, realized within the framework of the EMTN Programme of 1 billion euros launched at the end of 2024, has allowed ICSC to optimize the structure of funding, and to strengthen the positioning in the market of sustainable finance, accessing a broader and selective base of investors to be directed towards high impact initiatives in the fields of Sport and Culture. The results of 2025 return the profile of a Bank that strengthens the fundamentals for sustainable growth oriented to three strategic priorities: impact, profitability, risk control. A path fully consistent with the institutional mandate and the priorities of the Strategic Plan 2025-2030, aimed at supporting the sustainable development objectives and the long-term competitiveness of the Country System, enhancing the role of the Sport and Culture sectors as strategic levers for growth and sustainability.
“The performance of 2025 confirms the Bank’s constant growth and its ability to generate concrete impacts for the country. The issues exceeded €600 million, helping to activate projects with estimated social returns in over 5 billion. The first year of the new Strategic Plan already demonstrates the solidity of the path undertaken and traces an ambitious development horizon, oriented to consolidate the role of ICSC as a sustainable growth engine in the fields of Sport and Culture” said ICSC President, Beniamino Quintieri. “The 2025 marked the start of the Strategic Plan 2025-2030: a year dedicated to strengthening structural conditions for sustainable and high impact growth in support of the Sport and Culture sectors. The results achieved – from the significant reduction of the NPE ratio to more than 1 billion euros of investments activated, from the issue of the Social Bond to the strengthening of the structure of funding – attest the solidity of the business model and outline the ability to travel a strategic trajectory capable of combining financial sustainability, risk control and generation of lasting benefits for communities and territories, interpreting with coherence and effectiveness the mandate of public interest” said the Managing Director.
– ICSC press office photos –
(ITALPRESS).
