TIMELINE
1992: Banca Commerciale Italiana (BCI) representative office opened in Taipei.
1997: Cassa di Risparmio delle Provincie Lombarde (CARIPLO) representative office opened in Taipei.

Taiwan has few natural resources, but its people are well-educated and industrious. Over time the country has sought to achieve its economic aims through export-oriented industrial policies put into practice by highly efficient small- and medium-sized enterprises that are able to adapt quickly and efficiently to changing market conditions.
At the time that Banca Commerciale Italiana (BCI) opened its representative office in Taipei in the early 1990s, thereby becoming the first Italian bank to establish a direct presence in the country, the Taiwanese government had begun to implement a policy of expansion of domestic domand, both public and private. Along with the country's renewed international competitiveness thanks to the recent significant revaluation of its currency and the gradual liberalization of its financial systems, this was expected to ensure continued rapid economic growth.
BCI's objective in setting up its office was to take an active part in Taiwan's remarkable commercial activities at a time when the country was diversifying its sizeable trade flows towards Europe, as well as to foster the development of more typically financial activities, given the Taiwanese market's liberalization of capital flows and ample liquidity.
In 1997 CARIPLO inaugurated its own representative office in Taipei, establishing a presence that Banca Intesa would maintain over time.