CDP: profit and equity increase in 2023. More than 50 billion euro of resources deployed in 2022-2023 and 133 billion of activated investments in Italy

The Board of Directors of Cassa Depositi e Prestiti approved the draft separate financial statements and the consolidated financial statements as at 31 December 2023

CDP SpA net income up 23%, at over 3 billion euro for the first time ever (2.5 billion in 2022). Consolidated net income of 5 billion euro

Equity at 27.9 billion, up 8% compared to the end of 2022 (25.7 billion) thanks to the profit accrued in the year, net of dividends distributed

Resources deployed by the CDP Group amounting to 20.1 billion, a level that enabled the activation of 53.8 billion in investments, with a leverage effect of 2.7 times, benefiting the economic and social fabric of Italy

Loans increased by 3% to 124 billion euro to companies, infrastructures and Public Administration

In 2022-2023, the resources deployed by the CDP Group exceeded 50 billion, equal to 78% of the targets of the entire 2022-2024 Strategic Plan, activating investments totalling more than 133 billion

Funding in 2023 amounted to 362 billion, of which 285 billion related to postal funding. Bond funding up 6% to 18 billion, partly due to the placement of the first Green Bond and the first Yankee Bond

Strengthening of international activities, also with the opening of offices in Belgrade, Cairo and Rabat

Improved ESG performance, with higher ratings from leading rating agencies

Fourth Integrated Report approved, confirming growing commitment to creating economic, social and environmental value for the Country

Rome, 4 April 2024  h.14:37 – The Board of Directors of Cassa Depositi e Prestiti S.p.A. (CDP), chaired by Giovanni Gorno Tempini, approved the draft separate financial statements and the consolidated financial statements at 31 December 2023,¹ as well as the 2023 consolidated non-financial statement of the CDP Group included in the fourth Integrated Report, presented by Chief Executive Officer and General Manager Dario Scannapieco. The draft Financial Statements will be submitted for approval to the Shareholders’ Meeting, which will be called by the Board of Directors. The Board also approved new operations benefiting enterprises and infrastructure for a total value of around 1.4 billion euro.

Main financial results for 2023

The net income of CDP SpA reached a record level of 3.1 billion euro, up 23% from 2.5 billion last year, thanks also to a higher interest income and the increased contribution of the Group companies in terms of dividends. Consolidated net income amounted to 5 billion euro, down 1.8 billion euro (-26%). The decrease is mainly attributable to the equity valuation of ENI.

Equity, amounting to 27.9 billion, increased by 8% compared to the end of 2022, thanks to the profit accrued during the year, net of dividends distributed in keeping with Plan assumptions.

In line with its role as National Promotional Institution, in 2023 the CDP Group² deployed resources of around 20.1 billion, down compared to 2022, a year that included non-recurring transactions for 12.7 billion.³ This enabled a total of 53.8 billion in investments, with a leverage effect of 2.7 times the resources deployed in the period thanks to the resources attracted from third-party investors and co-lenders. In the same period, CDP SpA deployed 19.6 billion euro.

CDP's stock of loans to support companies, the Public Administration, infrastructure and international cooperation amounted to 124 billion, an increase of 3.2 billion euro compared to 2022 (+3%).

Numbers that confirm the solidity of CDP's new approach as defined by the transformational pillars of the Strategic Plan.

Funding amounted to 362 billion, of which 285 related to postal funding. Bond funding amounted to 18 billion, up 6% from 17 billion in 2022, also thanks to the placement of the first Green Bond and CDP's first bond issuance in US dollars ("Yankee Bond").

CDP S.p.A.

Net income: 3.1 billion euro (2.5 billion euro in 2022)

Loans and receivables: 124 billion euro (121 billion euro in 2022)

Resources deployed: 19.6 billion euro (30.2 billion euro in 2022)⁴

Postal savings: 285 billion euro (281 billion euro in 2022)

Equity: 27.9 billion euro (25.7 billion euro in 2022)

CDP Group

Consolidated net income: 5.0 billion euro (6.8 billion euro in 2022)

Consolidated net income pertaining to the Parent Company CDP S.p.A.: 3.3 billion euro (5.4 billion euro in 2022)

Resources deployed: 20.1 billion euro (30.6 billion euro in 2022)4

Total consolidated assets: 475 billion euro (478 billion euro in 2022)

Consolidated equity: 41.8 billion euro (39.4 billion euro in 2022), of which 25.7 billion euro pertaining to the Group (23.4 billion euro in 2022)

Progress of the Strategic Plan

Two years after the launch of the Strategic Plan, CDP closed 2023 with an operating and business model refocused on a clear objective: promoting the sustainable development of the Country by achieving a significant impact at economic, social and environmental levels.

In 2022 and 2023 the Cassa Depositi e Prestiti Group fully exceeded the business, operational and economic-financial targets set in the 2022-24 Strategic Plan. In detail, the resources deployed by the Group reached a total of 50.7 billion, an amount that is equivalent to 78% of the target set for the three-year period and well above the Plan’s objectives. The activated investments exceeded 100% of the three-year target, amounting to 133.5 billion, a value equal to 2.6 times the resources deployed in the period. At the end of 2023, the stock of loans had increased by 8% to 124 billion, compared to 114 billion in 2021.

The volumes reached go hand in hand with the completion of the main actions envisaged for the three transformative pillars of the Strategic Plan:

1. Financial instruments to support companies and the PA

With regard to the first pillar, CDP’s role in supporting enterprises and territorial development has been consolidated, with over 62,000 companies and entities served in the two-year period using a complementary and additive approach to the market and exploiting synergies with the banking channel. Instruments have been expanded to support the innovation, growth and international expansion of Italian enterprises and the development of the infrastructure sector, investments in priority sectors for the Country have been incentivised, and resources have been concentrated on high-impact projects, also through innovative financial instruments. This was also made possible by a more efficient use of funds from EU programmes, where CDP is the leader among its counterparts in Europe with more than 1 billion in European resources supporting investments in Italy.

Also in its role as an Italian Financial Institution for Development Cooperation, CDP has consolidated its actions, committing a total of 1.4 billion euro in the 2022-23 period, compared to 500 million in the 2020-21 period. A plan has been launched to open offices in non-EU countries, in Belgrade in Serbia and, in the first quarter of 2024, in Cairo in Egypt and in Rabat in Morocco, to strengthen its activity targeting sustainable growth in emerging economies. CDP also acts as manager of the Italian Climate Fund, which was set up to promote actions to adapt to and combat climate change.

2. Advisory activities and management of public funds

With regard to the second pillar, the historical activity of financing public bodies has been supplemented by technical-operational assistance (advisory activities) and the management of third-party funds, in order to allow an improvement in the Public Administration's spending capacity and to direct national and European resources, including those of the NRRP, towards projects with the highest impact, supporting their implementation. In this context, 17 central government entities receiving investments were supported in implementing over 90 measures of the Plan for a total value of approximately 50 billion euro. As part of mandate management operations, total resources allocated in the two-year period exceeded 2.2 billion, and the first agreement was signed with a Region to advise on managing the use of European Funds (in Emilia-Romagna with the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, EAFRD).

3. Sectoral analysis and impact assessment

This operation is part of the approach defined by the third pillar, which adds the dimension of impact to the traditional risk-return ratio, i.e. a criterion for evaluating business decisions also on the basis of the impact of projects on the economic, social and environmental development of the Country. CDP has strengthened its technical capacity to guide its lending and investment decisions by developing 11 sector policies and guidelines, and has the skills, processes and tools necessary to assess the projects it supports both before and after, and has integrated sustainability into its operating model, including by consolidating its governance.

Moreover, during the two-year period, CDP reaffirmed its commitment to the country's key sectors, including through new investments and support for strategic investee companies, and took a prudent approach to asset management through the principle of capital rotation (with more than 1 billion resources released through the sale of equity investments or real estate divestments for subsequent new lending) and crowding-in (attracting approximately 2.5 billion of third-party resources in venture capital, private equity and infrastructure funds).

Lastly, special attention was paid to development abroad, which included, among others, strengthening collaboration with European counterparts thanks in part to CDP's chairing of the European Long-Term Investors Association (ELTI) and the consolidation of the Brussels office, which facilitated system initiatives addressing key topics for Italy. Relations with international investors have also been strengthened, for example in the context of roadshows held in the United States and the Persian Gulf.

On the sustainability front, CDP's commitment has been recognised by two rating agencies: Moody’s Analytics improved CDP's ESG assessment for two consecutive years, raising it by six points, while at the beginning of 2024 Morningstar Sustainalytics ranked CDP first in the world in the “Banks” and “Development Banks” categories.

For further details on the highlights for 2023, see the section “Financial results for 2023”.

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The Chairman of Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, Giovanni Gorno Tempini, commented:

"The data we present today show how the actions we have taken for the implementation of the 2022-24 Strategic Plan, in an increasingly complex international scenario, have been effective, and how Cassa Depositi e Prestiti has been able to adapt to the new context and adequately play its role in supporting the Italian economy, also thanks to a growing closeness and a stronger dialogue with local areas. In the last two years, the resources deployed by the Group have exceeded 50 billion euro in favour of the entrepreneurial and social fabric, and in 2023 alone our contribution to Italian growth reached 1.4% of GDP. The strong commitment to sustainable development is also highlighted by our ESG rating awarded by the main international agencies, which have placed CDP at the top of the world rankings. The trust of our shareholders, of the Ministry of Economy and Finance and Banking Foundations, with whom we operate synergistically in the interest of the Country, has been fundamental in this process”.

Dario Scannapieco, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti’s Chief Executive Officer and General Manager stated:

"The 2023 financial results of Cassa Depositi e Prestiti reflect our growing commitment to the Country’s development. The increase in loans to 124 billion is a consequence of the new strategy that has consolidated our presence in Italy. Capital strengthening and the level of profit reached are the result of work that has made the Group even more solid and able to tackle the challenges we face. In its role of encouraging the growth of the economic system and catalysing resources, the CDP Group has activated investments for over 133 billion in the two-year period, already reaching the targets of the entire Strategic Plan. Our work as the Italian financial institution for development cooperation has led us to start a programme to open offices in non-European areas, to provide concrete support to emerging economies. Today CDP has an increasingly international role, highlighted by the results attained in the use of European funds. These results have been achieved thanks to the great commitment of all the Group’s people, who have contributed to creating a corporate culture and who share our long-term goals with passion".

Financial results for 2023

CDP Group’s activities

With regard to the activities and financial instruments in support of the Country, in 2023 the CDP Group deployed resources⁵ totalling 20.1 billion euro⁶, down compared to 2022, a year that included significant one-off transaction⁷. In the same period, the Parent Company CDP SpA deployed resources of 19.6 billion euro. During the year, the CDP Group's activities enabled investments totalling 53.8 billion, with a leverage effect of 2.7 times the resources deployed.

The CDP Group's activities have focused on six action areas: Lending to Enterprises and Financial Institutions, Public Administration, Infrastructure, International Cooperation and Development Finance, Equity and Real Estate.

• Resources amounting to 11.6 billion euro were deployed for Enterprises and Financial Institutions. More specifically, worthy of note are:

• the support of SMEs' access to credit through approximately 6 billion euro deployed through the banking channel;
• a proximity to businesses with over 50% of operations carried out in the year for new customers⁸, with 121 direct loans for medium and large-sized companies (+20% compared to 2022).

• Resources amounting to 2.9 billion euro were deployed for the Public Administration. More specifically:

• the renegotiation of loans and postponement of instalments falling due⁹ for more than 1,000 entities;
• support for NTPEs¹⁰ (Non-Territorial Public Entities) through the granting of 568 million of resources for local projects.

• Resources amounting to 3.6 billion euro were deployed for the Infrastructure sector. The main activities included:

• contribution to the completion of NRRP works in the rail sector by granting guarantees totalling 1.1 billion;
• support for the development and modernisation of the motorway sector by granting 1.1 billion of resources.

• In the field of International Cooperation and Development Finance, CDP's role has grown further, with approximately 1 billion euro of resources deployed in 2023 and the start of operations of the Climate Fund, managed on behalf of the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security. The main activities included:

• contribution to initiatives in strategic sectors¹¹ in Africa through 385 million in financing to multilateral financial institutions;
• support for SMEs in Serbia through the provision of financing in the amount of 40 million within the framework of the European WBIF programme¹²

• In the Equity sector, resources of over 1 billion euro have been deployed for the relaunch and support of important industrial companies in the Country, with commitments of approximately 420 million in various investment funds to support the different stages of development of Start-ups and SMEs. Based on the principle of capital rotation, the disposal of equity investments continued with investment targets reached, with the sale of the equity investment in Rocco Forte Hotels¹³ for approximately 277 million pounds.

Among the main activities, the following are noted:

• the approval of resources for over 650 million euro to support the relaunch plans of investee companies operating in strategic sectors, including Ansaldo Energia and Valvitalia;
• the approval of additional resources for GreenIT's new business plan for 170 million euro, with the aim of promoting the country's energy transition.
   
• Resources amounting to 225 million were deployed in the Real Estate sector. Activities of particular importance include:
• support for the tourism sector for over 140 million through the acquisition of hotel facilities by the Fondo Turismo 1 (FT1) and Fondo Turismo 2 (FT2) funds;
• the conclusion of a co-investment agreement between FNAS (the National Fund for Social Housing) and the EIF (European Investment Fund) for a total long-term investment of 300 million earmarked for social housing projects.

The CDP Group's work alongside the Public Administration continued in 2023 with Advisory activities for the realisation of investments and management of mandates on public funds. These include, in particular:

• support to Administrations receiving investments envisaged by the NRRP, in the context of the 17 Activity Plans undersigned to support the implementation of over 90 measures of the Plan for total investments of approximately 50 billion¹⁴;
• support for more than 40 public bodies in implementing over 80 infrastructure projects thanks to the Contribution Agreement signed with the European Commission in July 2022 as part of the InvestEU Advisory Hub;
• Support for the management of approximately 800 million euro of resources on behalf of Ministries¹⁵, also attributable to projects under the NRRP and the start of operations of the new Italian Climate Fund, with the approval of the first operations;
• the extension of advisory and mandate management activities to the European Structural Funds, with the signing of the agreement with the Emilia-Romagna Region and with the Regional Agency for Disbursements in Agriculture (AGREA) to support the management of the resources of the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD).

In 2023, the CDP Group continued to move towards the full integration of sectoral strategic analyses and policy guidance into its business model. More specifically:

• the start of the collection of physical result indicators along the perimeter of direct and Public Administration lending;
• the approval of CDP's first carbon footprint reduction target¹⁶ and a further 6 policies¹⁷ for a total of 11 policies approved since the start of the Plan.

Financial results

CDP S.p.A.

In terms of income statement results, CDP SpA reported its highest ever net income of 3.1 billion euro, up 0.6 billion euro (+23%) from the previous financial year. The main income statement items are illustrated below:

• net interest income, amounting to 2.8 billion euro, was up compared to 2022 mainly due to the improvement in the spread between interest-bearing assets and liabilities, also thanks to asset-liability management actions undertaken to mitigate the impact of the rise and flattening of the rate curve;
• dividends amounted to 2 billion, up from 2022, in particular due to the higher contribution of the Group Companies;
• other net revenues, amounting to 0.1 billion euro, were down compared to 2022, due above all to the impact of the trend of interest rates on profits (losses) on trading and hedging activities;
• the cost of risk amounted to -0.5 billion, down from 2022 mainly due to the write-down of the equity investment held in CDP Equity.

In 2023 the cost/income ratio stood at 6%, down one percentage point from 2022, also thanks to initiatives to curb costs.

As regards the balance sheet items, total assets amounted to 396 billion euro (-1% on 2022) and mainly included:

• cash and cash equivalents and other treasury investments, which amounted to 154 billion, down from the figure recorded at the end of 2022 (-8%) due to lending and equity activities and the asset-liability management actions;
• loans amounting to 124 billion in favour of enterprises, Public Administration and infrastructure, up from 121 billion at the end of 2022 (+3%);
• debt securities amounted to 72 billion, up from the figure for the end of 2022 (+9%) due to purchases of government bonds during the year;
• equity investments and funds amounting to 38 billion, broadly in line with the figure at the end of 2022, with new investment offset by impairment on the equity portfolio.

Funding stood at 362 billion euro, down 2% from the figure recorded at the end of 2022. Specifically:

• postal funding amounted to 285 billion, a slight increase over the previous year due to interest accrued by savers;
• funding from banks and customers amounting to 59 billion, down from the end of 2022 mainly due to the decline in short-term funding (particularly repurchase agreements) attributable to the aforementioned asset-liability management strategies;
• bond funding amounted to 18 billion, up year-on-year due in particular to new bond issuances during the year, including CDP's first Green Bond and first dollar issuance (Yankee Bond) and the new retail issuance, which registered orders for approximately 10 billion euro and an increased interest from foreign investors.

Equity, amounting to 27.9 billion, increased compared to the end of 2022 (+8%) thanks to the net income accrued during the year, net of dividends distributed in line with Plan assumptions.

CDP Group                              

The pre-tax profit for the year of the CDP Group, comprising the Parent Company and subsidiaries subject to management and coordination, stood at 2.7 billion euro, an increase over 2022 (1.7 billion) due to the improved contribution of the Parent Company.

The CDP Group's consolidated financial statements include, in addition to the CDP Group perimeter, companies over which the Parent Company does not exercise management and coordination (including major listed subsidiaries such as SNAM, Terna, Italgas and Fincantieri and associates such as ENI, Poste Italiane, Saipem, WeBuild and Nexi).

Consolidated net income amounted to 5.0 billion euro, a decrease compared to the previous year (6.8 billion¹⁸), attributable to the lower contribution from ENI (-2.6 billion). The net income pertaining to the Parent Company, thus excluding minority interests, is 3.3 billion (5.4 billion in 2022).

The total consolidated assets stood at 475 billion euro, down 0.6% from the previous year-end.

Total funding stood at 402.7 billion euro, down 0.9% from the end of 2022 (406.3 billion). The item mainly includes the Parent Company's postal funding, funding from banks, and bond issuances mainly attributable to CDP and the Terna, Snam and Italgas Groups.

Consolidated equity, amounting to 41.8 billion euro, increased by 2.4 billion compared to the previous year (39.4 billion) due to the increase associated with the net income for the year, partially offset by the decrease due to the distribution of dividends.

Sustainability: CDP Group’s fourth Integrated Report approved

The Board of Directors also approved the CDP Group's fourth Integrated Report¹⁹, which illustrates the non-financial results and impacts generated in 2023. This commitment is even more significant in light of the strengthening of European reporting obligations under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which will be implemented from the next financial statements.

The percentage of resources deployed to the ten areas of action envisaged in the 2022-2024 Strategic Plan is growing strongly (83% of the total compared to 68% in 2022), such fields of action being aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda. The resources deployed to more than 12,200 enterprises and 1,660 public bodies translate into positive impacts on the economic fabric: 26 billion of GDP generated, equal to 1.4% of the national GDP; approximately 50 billion of production value activated; approximately 360,000 jobs created or maintained. 

Indeed, in keeping with the four challenges of the Plan, the Integrated Report focuses on the efforts to:

• promote inclusive and sustainable growth with resources amounting to more than 2.4 billion, including through social and student housing projects, with 1,173 beds in social housing and 15,632 beds for university students away from home, and overall projects in favour of 438 schools and healthcare facilities. Specifically, CDP's support for schools enabled the construction or upgrading of 12,706 places for students through direct financing, while thanks to advisory activities an additional 6,470 pupils benefited from new school buildings;
• combat climate change and protect the ecosystems with an additional 2.4 billion in resources, including through energy transition projects for which approximately 2 billion is earmarked for 36 companies and 109 public bodies, and projects to make the water network more efficient and to promote the circular economy, while reducing its own per capita emissions intensity by 66% from 2019;
• contribute over 9.4 billion to the rethinking of value chains, through initiatives in favour of: strategic supply chains at the national level (about 1 billion for the growth plans of over 100 companies) and the international level (over 6,000 companies involved in the Business Matching platform); key transport and logistics hubs for the Country, with over 940 km of road network subject to redevelopment and upgrading and over 130 million in investments for ports and airports; International Cooperation & Development Finance, where about 785 million of resources have been deployed, 30% more than in 2022; supply chains, which are increasingly sustainable with about 70% of purchases from CDP suppliers with environmental certifications and over 88% from suppliers with social and governance certifications.
• promote digitisation and innovation with around 2.4 billion, among others supporting more than 900 companies in their digital transformation (43 with direct funds and 871 through the capital assets fund); at the level of internal digital transformation, one of the main results is the achievement of 66% of applications designed in the cloud;

Against this backdrop, the Group also made significant progress with the objectives of the ESG Plan, including the goal of having at least 10 ESG policies within the Plan’s timeframe, achieved one year ahead of schedule. Moreover, with regard to the first carbon footprint reduction target for the lending portfolio²⁰ approved in June 2023 by the Board of Directors of CDP, there was a decrease of about 7% in the overall emission intensity compared to 2022.

Finally, in accordance with Regulation EU 2020/852, which introduced the taxonomy of eco-friendly economic activities²¹, the Group is required to publish the Green Asset Ratio ("GAR") for the first two environmental objectives (climate change mitigation and adaptation) from the 2023 financial year. In order to comply with regulatory requirements, CDP created an internal task force, introduced a new information classification model and promoted an initial data collection campaign from counterparties, particularly local authorities, which will be reinforced in 2024 with dedicated training and in-depth analysis initiatives. For 2023, the Group's assets are 6.3% sustainable in terms of capex and 3.5% sustainable in terms of turnover for the scope considered.

The information presented in the Integrated Report is the result of responsible management of financial resources, but above all of the daily work of the approximately 2,000 people in the Group and the strengthened dialogue with stakeholders, which led to the approval of the first dedicated Policy and the involvement of some 200 civil society representatives in sustainability policy consultations, to the creation of the ESG Community with some of Italy's leading economic entities and the organisation of the European multistakeholder event Eyes on a sustainable future, which involved over 400 stakeholders in attendance and 2,300 streaming online. Furthermore, as a testament to the Group's commitment to local communities, more than 350 employees donated over 3,000 hours of volunteer work.

Finally, in 2023 of particular note was the commitment to people, with around 90,000 hours of training (+41% compared to 2022, with the first ESG Master) and the value placed on diversity, fairness and inclusion, with 47% women among new executives. 

This commitment was recognised by the ratings of the ESG rating agencies, by the achievement of the Gender Equality Certification (thanks also to the 65% increase in women holding positions of responsibility in the two-year period) and by the stakeholders themselves: in 2023, 74% expressed increasing satisfaction with the frequency of engagement in the Group’s topics (+18 percentage points compared to 2022).²²

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Please note that the Independent Auditors are completing the audit of the separate financial statements and the consolidated financial statements as at 31 December 2023. The reclassified consolidated financial statements set out in the Annex are not subject to auditing by the Independent Auditors.

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The Manager in charge with preparing the company's financial reports, Fabio Massoli, declares pursuant to Article 154-bis, paragraph 2, of the Consolidated Law on Finance that the accounting information contained in this press release corresponds to documentary evidence and the accounting books and records.

The 2023 Annual Financial Report, together with the certification pursuant to Article 154-bis, paragraph 5, of the Consolidated Law on Finance and the Independent Auditors and Board of Statutory Auditors’ Reports shall be available to the public at the Company’s registered office, on the CDP website and in any other manner provided for by the applicable law, within the legal time limits.