Italy parliament passes key bank capital measure

ROME: The Italian parliament approved on Saturday a package of measures which include new rules that would benefit banks by allowing them to treat deferred tax assets as capital.

The so-called "Milleproroghe" package -- an annual catch-all decree which extends the life of measures ranging from the bank capital issue to media ownership rules and a one-euro tax on cinema tickets -- won final approval in the senate by 159 votes against 126.

The lower house had given it the green light on Friday.

Italian banks had pressed for the capital amendment, which could boost bank capital under new Basel III banking rules, saying it removed a distortion that put them at a competitive disadvantage against rivals in other countries.

In addition to the bank capital issue, the Milleproroghe decree maintains a ban on cross-holdings of television and print media assets until the end of March. However the government may extend the ban until the end of the year.