{
  "title": "Republic of San Marino: Selected Issues",
  "publication": "IMF Staff Country Reports, December 10, 2024",
  "sourceUrl": "https://www.imf.org/en/publications/cr/issues/2024/12/09/republic-of-san-marino-selected-issues-559293",
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  "summary": "This Selected Issues paper compares Sammarinese banks with nearby Italian banks with similar business models, highlighting gaps in asset quality, capital adequacy, and cost efficiency.",
  "sections": [
    {
      "heading": "Summary findings",
      "content": "- Compares Sammarinese banks with nearby Italian banks with similar business models, highlighting gaps in asset quality, capital adequacy, and cost efficiency.\n- Most San Marino banks need to catch up in terms of asset quality, capital adequacy and cost efficiency.\n- The banking sector remains oversized.\n- The number of bank branches needs to be reduced by more than two thirds to reach the EU level.\n- The share of income-generating assets should be increased.\n- It is key to improve the competitiveness of the banking sector well-ahead of the 15-year time frame granted by the EU association agreement."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Detailed diagnostic of the banking sector",
      "content": "- Asset quality: San Marino banks show gaps relative to comparable Italian peers (no specific percentages provided on the page).\n- Capital adequacy: Shortfalls vis-à-vis similar Italian banks are identified (no specific ratios provided on the page).\n- Cost efficiency: High operating costs reduce profitability; reducing operating costs would boost profits.\n- Business model: Increasing the share of income-generating assets is recommended to enhance returns.\n- Structure: The sector is oversized; system-level consolidation can be considered if within-bank consolidation is insufficient to restore competitiveness and achieve economies of scale."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Policy recommendations and scenarios",
      "content": "- Bank-level actions:\n  - Reduce high operating costs to boost profits.\n  - Increase the share of income-generating assets.\n  - Pursue within-bank consolidation where feasible to restore competitiveness.\n- System-level options:\n  - Consider system-wide consolidation to achieve economies of scale if within-bank measures are insufficient.\n  - Reduce the number of bank branches by more than two thirds to align with EU branch density.\n- Timing:\n  - Improve competitiveness well-ahead of the 15-year time frame granted by the EU association agreement.\n\n---\n\n Content in this bundle\n\n- Republic of San Marino: Selected Issues; IMF Country Report No. 24/331; November 15, 2024\n  - Republic of San Marino: Selected Issues; IMF Country Report No. 24/331; November 15, 2024 (Markdown version){rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text/markdown\"}\n  - Republic of San Marino: Selected Issues; IMF Country Report No. 24/331; November 15, 2024 (PDF){rel=\"external\" type=\"application/pdf\"}"
    }
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    "Published: December 10, 2024",
    "Series: IMF Staff Country Reports",
    "DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9798400294761.002",
    "Compares Sammarinese banks with nearby Italian banks with similar business models, highlighting gaps in asset quality, capital adequacy, and cost efficiency.",
    "Most San Marino banks need to catch up in terms of asset quality, capital adequacy and cost efficiency.",
    "The banking sector remains oversized.",
    "The number of bank branches needs to be reduced by more than two thirds to reach the EU level.",
    "The share of income-generating assets should be increased.",
    "It is key to improve the competitiveness of the banking sector well-ahead of the 15-year time frame granted by the EU association agreement.",
    "Asset quality: San Marino banks show gaps relative to comparable Italian peers (no specific percentages provided on the page).",
    "Capital adequacy: Shortfalls vis-à-vis similar Italian banks are identified (no specific ratios provided on the page).",
    "Cost efficiency: High operating costs reduce profitability; reducing operating costs would boost profits.",
    "Business model: Increasing the share of income-generating assets is recommended to enhance returns.",
    "Structure: The sector is oversized; system-level consolidation can be considered if within-bank consolidation is insufficient to restore competitiveness and achieve economies of scale.",
    "Bank-level actions:",
    "System-level options:",
    "Timing:",
    "**Republic of San Marino: Selected Issues; IMF Country Report No. 24/331; November 15, 2024**"
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      "title": "Republic of San Marino: Selected Issues; IMF Country Report No. 24/331; November 15, 2024",
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