ABSTRACT
The Bank of Italy occupies a special position in the Italian institutional panorama. The stability of its leadership (it has had only nine Gover nors since it was founded just over a hundred years ago), together with the solidity of its technical and administrative structures, has made it into one of Italy’s so-called ‘strong’ institutions. This strength neither owes anything to chance nor does it derive exclusively from the legal framework in which the Bank operates, but is the fruit of its history, which, albeit marked by difficulties, setbacks and outright crises, has consolidated its position with respect to economic agents and govern mental authorities.
