Intesa Sanpaolo says repaid around 5.5 billion euros of ECB loans

Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo ISP said on Friday it had repaid around 5.5 billion euros ($5.81 billion) in loans from the European Central Bank (ECB).

The early repayment leaves the group with around 96 billion euros in outstanding Targeted Longer Term Refinancing Operation (TLTRO) III funds, the bank added.

The ECB has given banks an incentive to get rid of those loans by taking away a rate subsidy in October. It was its first move to mop up cash from the banking system and the first step towards unwinding its massive bond purchases.

($1 = 0.9468 euros)