【经济学人】意大利银行丨2016.12.17丨总第760期

THIS is no time to be timid. Or so Jean-Pierre Mustier seems to think. On December 13th, after five months in the job, the chief executive of UniCredit presented his plan for Italy’s biggest bank. He didn’t hold back. UniCredit is shedding €17.7bn worth ($18.8bn) of bad loans, taking a one-off provision of €8.1bn. It will save €1.7bn a year by 2019, cutting 6,500 jobs on top of 7,500 previously announced to shrink its workforce by 14%. And in a rights issue next year it will raise €13bn—just €2bn less than its market value before the announcement. The markets lapped it up: the shares gained 16%, before retreating the next day.

现在不是胆怯的时候，让-皮埃尔·马斯蒂尔可能会这么认为。意大利联合信贷银行的总经理上任五个月后，于12月13日为这家意大利最大的银行提出了计划方针。他毫不犹豫地做出决定让意大利联合信贷银行清理掉价值177亿欧元的不良贷款，一次性投入81亿欧元的坏账准备金。因为除了先前宣布为了削减14%劳动力而裁掉的7500名员工还将会裁掉6500名，所以2019年前，预计每年节余17亿欧元。同时，明年将增加130亿欧元的配股发行，这比之前公布的市价要低20亿欧元。这个市场会照单全收，因为在第二天回落之前，股价增加16%。

• unveils  使公诸于众

• recapitalisation n. 资本结构之改变；资本额的调整

• sheds   流出；摆脱；  

• timid  羞怯的

• hold back 隐瞒；退缩；抑制；阻止

• one-off  一次性的

• provision  n. 规定；条款；准备；

• lap up 欣然接受，反应热烈；轻易相信

Mr Mustier had already been busy. The previous day UniCredit sold Pioneer, its asset-management arm, to France’s Amundi (though it will still distribute Pioneer’s products). It recently unloaded its stake in Bank Pekao, in Poland, as well as 30% of Fineco, an Italian online bank of which it will retain control. The bad-debt write-down, restructuring costs and other bits and bobs will partially offset the gains from these sales and the rights issue. But the boss expects UniCredit’s ratio of equity to risk-weighted assets—a gauge of capital strength—to rise from 10.8%, second-weakest among the euro zone’s most important banks (see chart), to at least 12.5% by 2019.

马斯蒂尔先生已经非常忙碌了，前一天意大利联合信贷银行将它的资产管理公司Pioneer的股份卖给了法国的Amundi（即使意大利联合信贷银行仍会分配Pioneer的产品）。意大利联合信贷银行最近还抛掉了Pekao银行的股份，以及一家名为Fineco的意大利网络银行30%的股份，不过他们仍然保有控制权。由坏账减计资产账面价值、重组成本和其他小修小补的花费将部分抵消掉从这些抛售以及配股发行中的收益。但是，这位总经理还是希望，意大利联合信贷银行关于资本实力的评估风险加权资产和股本的比例，将从欧洲地区大型银行（见表格）排名倒数第二的10.8%到2019年至少上涨至12.5%。

• Gauge：评估; 测量的标准或范围; 尺度，标准; 测量仪器。

• Amundi 欧洲最大资产管理公司

• Unload  卸；摆脱…之负担；倾销 

• bits and bobs 1、零碎东西，残余的东西，  

• offset 抵消；弥补；

• ratio of equity 股本利润率

• risk-weighted assets 风险加权资产

UniCredit has already tapped shareholders twice since the financial crisis, for €4bn in 2010 and €7.5bn in 2012. Not long ago analysts thought it might have to beg for another €4bn-9bn. Asking for €13bn may therefore appear unduly bold.

自经济危机后，裕信银行已从股东处收取了两次资金，一次是2010年400万英镑，一次是2012年750万英镑。不久之前分析家们还预计后续可能还会有400-900万的资金需求。因此目前所要求1300万英镑似乎过于险峻。

• unduly  adv. 过度地；不适当地；不正当地

• bold. adj. 大胆的，英勇的；黑体的；厚颜无耻的；险峻的

Perhaps boldness is in order. The bank has been in a rut for years. Although less than half its revenue comes from Italy, it has been weighed down by its homeland’s woeful economic performance and a heavy burden of dud loans. Of its €49.7bn (gross) of non-performing Italian debt marked “non-core”—for eventual disposal—€43.2bn-worth dates from 2010 or earlier: high time to clear it out. In April Atlante, a new bank-rescue fund, took over UniCredit’s guarantee of a €1.5bn share sale by an ailing smaller lender. That embarrassment helped to seal the fate of Mr Mustier’s predecessor, Federico Ghizzoni.

可能这种“大胆”是正确的。这家银行已经多年保持一成不变了。即使这家银行一半以上的收益并不是来自意大利，它还是能够拖垮自己祖国奄奄一息的经济情况，同时让其背负上坏账的沉重负担。为了最终处理掉这些坏账，其中标注为“无关紧要”的不良意大利负债多达497亿欧元，以及追溯到2010年甚至更早些时候价值432亿欧元不良账目，现在都急需被清理干净。四月份，一家名为Atlante的全新银行救助基金通过一家规模较小的不景气贷方，接管了意大利联合信贷银行15亿欧元股份销售的保证权。这般窘境过去在决定马斯蒂尔先生的前任费德里科·吉佐尼的命运上起到了推波助澜的作用。

• in order（美）适宜，适当；正确

• in a rut千篇一律；一成不变

• Weigh down拖累

Even after this week’s leap, UniCredit’s shares were trading at below one-third of net book value. They are down by about half this year. Mr Mustier is scarcely promising the moon: just a “simple, pan-European commercial bank” with a return on tangible equity of 9% within three years, more than double 2015’s figure but still less than the estimated cost of equity. He is budgeting for revenue to grow by just 0.6% a year, as low interest rates drag down income from lending. Better asset quality will help: default rates are falling. So will cuts, both at head office and in the field: 944 branches will go in Italy, Germany (where UniCredit owns HypoVereinsbank, ranked fourth by assets) and Austria (Bank Austria, second).

即使在这周出现了上涨，意大利联合信贷银行股份的交易价值依然低于账面价值的三分之一。它们的股份今年约下跌了一半。（期待您的翻译，明天会有针对这句话的读者试译详解哟~）他预计每年收入仅仅会上涨0.6%，因为低利率会拖累通过借贷获取的收益。更好的资产质量将会促使违约率会开始下降。裁员也将会继续进行，全部集中在总部以及这个领域：意大利、德国、和澳大利亚合计944家分公司会受到影响。（德国当地意大利联合信贷银行拥有资产排名第四的HypoVereins银行；旗下的澳洲银行排名第二。）

• promise the moon 空口许诺

Italy’s biggest bank may at last perk up. Its third-largest and the world’s oldest, alas, is tottering. The European Central Bank is insisting that Monte dei Paschi di Siena raise €5bn in equity by the end of the year. Although bankers are persevering with a private-sector plan, a state rescue looks likely. Under European rules, that means pain for retail bondholders. Italy’s banking woes are far from over.

意大利最大的银行最终可能会再次崛起，可是这家世界第三大且最古老的银行目前显得摇摇欲坠。欧洲央行要求西亚那银行（Monte dei Paschi di Siena）在今年年底在股市中筹措50亿欧元。虽然银行家们正在维持一种私企的计划，但是国家很有可能提出救助计划。在欧洲规则之下来看，对于散户债券持有者而言是极其痛苦的。意大利银行的悲怆还远未结束。

• Tottering：蹒跚的，动摇的;

翻译 ▍arias；蜗牛走的很慢

审核 ▍QQ

编辑 ▍璃儿

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