Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Pesaro

Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Pesaro

Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Pesaro formed in 1992 when Italy's Amato Law required savings banks to split into joint-stock companies and charitable foundations. The foundation originally held the controlling stake in Cassa di Risparmio di Pesaro, later absorbed through regional banking consolidation into UBI Banca and ultimately Intesa Sanpaolo. That shareholding history meant the foundation's fortunes tracked the tumultuous Marche banking consolidations for three decades, generating both distributions and, in recent years, legal claims related to the UBI/Intesa transition. The foundation's investment posture is structurally concentrated: the residual Intesa Sanpaolo stake remains the core financial asset, while three notable Pesaro properties deliver direct rental income and house the foundation's cultural programming. Palazzo Montani Antaldi, acquired in 1876 by the bank and held by the foundation since 1992, serves as headquarters and exhibition space for the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Pesaro Art Collection. The foundation deploys income through three channels: traditional grants to local arts, education, and social-welfare organizations; crowdfunding calls that leverage a dedicated online platform to match citizen donations; and direct operation of cultural venues including the Ex Chiesa dell'Annunziata and the Biblioteca Gianfranco Sabbatini. The governing council is led by President Marco Martelli, a certified accountant who joined the board in 2018 and assumed the presidency in November 2019. Vice President Giovanna Giacchella and General Secretary Alberto Ficari complete the senior executive team. The foundation maintains memberships in ACRI, the national association of Italian banking foundations, and the regional Consulta delle Fondazioni marchigiane. A participation in Filiera Futura, an ACRI-backed initiative for rural and cultural regeneration, signals a pivot toward collaborative programming. In November 2023, the foundation approved an updated multi-year strategic plan re-prioritizing youth education and digital cultural access, while maintaining its historical commitment to the restoration of Pesaro's built heritage. What separates this foundation from generic Italian banking foundations is its insistence on operating physical cultural infrastructure rather than merely funding third-party institutions. It owns the gallery, the concert space, and the library—acting as a direct cultural operator in a mid-sized Adriatic city where institutional alternatives are thin. The ongoing Intesa Sanpaolo relationship, combining a legacy shareholding with reputational and legal complexity, adds a financial-structure layer absent from foundations that liquidated banking stakes decades ago.