2015, would have amounted to about €50 billion, or 5 per cent of all loans disbursed, close to precrisis levels. the growth of npls was strongly influenced by recovery times, which until now have been particularly long in italy ; the measures approved in the last year will shorten them significantly. as the bank of italy has emphasized in the past, reducing average recovery times even by just two years would have determined, together with a higher valuation of npls, a ratio of bad debt to total loans close to half of what it is today. most italian banks are capable of dealing with the still fragile cyclical conditions, lending to the economy and competing efficiently on the market. a number of assessments made in the last few weeks put the recapitalization needs of the entire italian banking system at somewhere in the order of tens of billions of euros, based on the assumption that the total stock of bad loans, and possibly even some of the loans that are “ unlikely to be repaid ”, must be sold at once by all banks at a price equal to approximately half the value of the bad loans recorded in banks ’ balance sheets. in italy a loan is classified as “ non - performing ” based on harmonized criteria established at the european level and published by the eba in 2013, which are largely aligned with those previously applied in italy and with international practice. for the valuation of non - performing loans in their balance sheets, italian banks must comply with international accounting and reporting standards ( ias / ifrs ). as they permit discretion we have constantly encouraged banks to adopt prudent valuation policies that take sufficient account of the degree of uncertainty in recovery times and flows. our supervisory action on provisioning in 2012 and 2013 is a clear example of this. in the approach traditionally taken in italy, npls can be divided into at least two large and very dissimilar categories based on the degree of difficulty faced by debtors : of the €360 billion worth of gross npls outstanding at the end of 2015, bad loans accounted for €210 billion ; €150 billion were in loans classified as “ unlikely to be repaid ”, past - due or in breach of overdraft ceilings. these two categories of npls obviously have different requirements in terms of coverage and write - downs. both types of loans must be booked in the balance sheets with due prudence, but not at values corresponding to their immediate liquidation. loans in the second

##ly adopted by the bank of albania, allows the albanian economy to withstand these shocks at minimum cost. let us leave this mechanism operate smoothly, without excessive reactions from the market or its agents. any smooth moves towards the exchange rate equilibrium will be in the albanian economy ’ s own interest. any hasty short - term reactions, like the ones we have been attesting to over the course of the present year and in the early days of this week, bring about individual financial cost to those undertaking them, as well as financial cost to the economy. no economic agent is stronger than the foundations. the high volatility and uncertainty in the foreign exchange market do not have any real base. the euroisation of the economy is a visionary idea, not only for albania but for the entire region as well, since its final aspiration is the membership into the european union. it encourages the domestic and the regional market, and the european authorities, to speed up the convergence process. however, convergence in the euro area is a derivative of continuous structural reforms and strengthening of financial systems, wherein the stability of the currency is of prime importance. there can be no european integration without a longterm equilibrium of the national and european currency. in the long run, the exchange rate will inevitably reflect the sound foundations of the albanian economy, which are to remain so. the past years ’ equilibriums remain real indicators of the potentials of the albanian economy. in the long run, we remain deeply convinced of the benefits the free floating exchange rate regime brings about. it will be the passport to and the best support to the albanian economy in its path to european integration. i take this opportunity to invite all the economic agents to consider the benefits, that our national currency provides, impassively, as the best long - term instrument for protecting their savings and as the greatest buffer to wealth volatility. to albania, the lek has been, is and will remain a successful currency. the lek serves as an anchor for all our european initiatives. in the last 17 years, the lek has managed to withstand the inflationary pressures and the pressures deriving from the foreign markets. therefore, it should be left alone. it should move freely on its path, concurrent with the market demand and supply. the lek is the icon of the albanian economy that will guide us through the european gates. i take this opportunity to invite the media to comprehend this message and transmit it to the public at large. before giving the