The volume is the first in the series «Credito cooperativo. Innovazione identità tradizione» created within the Cooperative Credit Research Center of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. Established in March 2022, the Center intends to promote and carry out scientific activities by enhancing in a multidisciplinary perspective the technical-identity character of cooperative credit and delving into management, legal and governance issues. This volume proposes an empirical analysis of two profiles affecting Italian cooperative credit banks in light of regulatory changes and the ongoing digital transformation. On the one hand, cooperative credit has been affected by a reform that has changed its organizational structure. On the other, the Italian banking environment is experiencing a significant reduction in the branch network accompanied by an increasing digitization of banking processes and customer products and services. Two empirical papers collected in the volume in order to investigate this particular evolving context by examining its implications in terms of the operational efficiency of banking intermediaries and financial support to businesses. First, it examines the impact on operational efficiency brought about by the change in organizational structures following the reform affecting the sector. Second, it investigates the value of proximity as a natural prerequisite for credit
