Three months ago, Italy was on the verge of announcing a banking bail-out similar to that undertaken by other European countries. But it was stalled by wariness among the banks over what conditions might apply to the aid, how expensive it might be and what appeared to be second thoughts on the part of the Italian authorities.

Now, both sides are inching closer to an agreement. The government has promised up to €20bn ($25.7bn) of funding to bolster the banks’ capital, in the form of bonds issued by the banks that the state would buy but that would leave it as an arm’s-length investor.