What Happened: La Repubblica published anecdotal evidence on Nov. 7 indicating that Italian savers are increasingly moving their money out of the country and transferring funds into Swiss and Austrian bank accounts. The newspaper did not provide figures to indicate the volume of the trend.
Why It Matters: If confirmed, the trend would indicate Italian concerns about the future of the country's banking sector. It could also force the Italian government to introduce capital controls to mitigate the trend. While such a development is far off at this point, it will be important to monitor.
Background: Financial markets have been worried about political instability in Italy since the current government of the Five Star Movement and the League party took office. The coalition government's intended reforms have raised fears about Italy's fiscal trajectory and tensions with the European Union.
Read More:
- Italy: Rome Challenges the European Union with Plan to Increase Its Budget Deficit (Oct. 16, 2018)
- Italy: Rome Trains Its Sights on Defense Spending Cuts (Oct. 4, 2018)
- Reforming Southern Europe: What's Next? (Sept. 26, 2018)
- What Italy's Foreign Policy Will Look Like Under New Rulers (June 18, 2018)
