Banks not lending to small, mid-sized business, study-update

(ANSA) - Rome, January 20 - The Italian banking system has failed to extend enough credit to the country's small and medium-sized businesses, according to a report released Tuesday by business group Confcommercio. It calculates that since 2010, some 97 billion euros in credit could have been used by businesses but was not available, or offered only at unaffordable interest rates, in some cases up to 15%. The report comes as Premier Matteo Renzi's cabinet debates significant changes to ownership rules at some Italian banks.