The Order of Merit is given to people who stand out with their fostering of Christian values and charitable work.

Andrea Casini, Deputy Chairman of the Management Board and Chief Operating Officer of UniCredit Bulbank, was distinguished by the Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Order Fra' Matthew Festing with the grade of Commander Pro Merito Melitensi

The insignia of his award were presented to him in Sofia by the Ambassador of the Sovereign Order of Malta to Bulgaria, Mr. Camillo Zuccoli, during the traditional reception for the national holiday of the Order dedicated to St. John the Baptist.

The Order of Merit is given to people who stand out with their fostering of Christian values and charitable work. A distinction with the grade of Grand Officer was assigned also to the Director of State Protocol of the Republic of Bulgaria with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Ivan Dimitrov.

The feast of St. John the Baptist, Patron of the Sovereign Order of Malta, is celebrated at the end of June. More than 900 years ago, monks devoted to St. John the Baptist established in 1048 a convent and a hospital near Jerusalem, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, and for this reason through the centuries the monks of the order have been called knights of St. John or hospitallers. Later on they lived on the island of Rhodes and the island of Malta, and from there today's popular name of the order is the Order of Malta. In 1113, the Order was granted sovereign status by Pope Paschal II and even nowadays continues to exist as a state.

The Sovereign Order of Malta currently maintains full diplomatic relations with 104 states, with the European Union, and has Standing Representation with the UN in New York and with all specialized agencies of the United Nations.

The humanitarian and hospitaller work of the Order is carried out in 120 countries on all continents, in which 80,000 volunteers participate everyday.

Bulgaria and the Order of Malta established diplomatic relations in 1994, and the Embassy of the Order in Sofia has been working since 2005, for the past 8 years performing 213 humanitarian and social actions in 83 different places in Bulgaria.

Andrea Casini is a professional banker. He started his career in UniCredit in 1987 as a branch manager of Credito Italiano in Brescia. He has taken various managerial positions in Italy and in 2001 became Head of UniCredit Group's Corporate Banking for the countries of New Europe. From 2002 to 2005 he was Chief Operating Officer of the Banks of UniCredit in Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

In 2010, Andrea Casini was honoured as Banker of the Year by Banker newspaper. In 2012, received the recognition of the Order of the Star of Italy, which is given by the President of the Republic for merit in the development of the Bulgarian-Italian relations. He is an active participant in the charitable initiatives of the bank.

More information for media:

UniCredit Bulbank, Identity & Communications Department

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Ekaterina Ancheva, Phone: + 359 2 9264 963, flbufsjob/bodifwbAvojdsfejuhspvq/ch

Magdalena Ivanova, Phone: + 359 2 9232 528, nbhebmfob/jwbopwbAvojdsfejuhspvq/ch