ALESSANDRO CARRETTA is full professor of Economics and Management of Financial Intermediaries and Director of Ph.D Program in Banking and Finance at the University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Italy. He has been teaching Banking and Finance for more than 25 years, formerly at the Universities of Urbino, Lecce, Milan and Bocconi. His main research interest relates to banking management, focussing on banking groups and diversification; regulation and control; corporate governance, culture and organizational change in banks. He has widely published in this area more than 100 books and articles in academic journals. Prof. Carretta is member of committees and boards of several journals, research bodies and financial institutions. FRANCO FIORDELISI (MA, Ph.D) is professor in Banking and Finance at the University of Rome III, Italy and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Essex, UK. His main research interest relates to the economics of banking focussing on efficiency, productivity, value creation and and M&A activities. His research has been published by several international academic journals. He recently published 'Shareholder Value in European Banking' (Palgrave 2007). He has acted as a consultant to many financial instututions GIANLUCA MATTAROCCI (MA, Ph.D) is lecturer of Economics and Management of Financial Intermediaries at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Italy. His main research interest relates to asset management, real estate, rating and corporate finance. He has acted as a consultant for banks and factoring companies.