Credem Bank in Italy officially accepts massive wheels of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese as collateral for small business loans, storing hundreds of thousands of them in highly secured, climate-controlled vaults.

A closer look

Credem Bank in Italy officially accepts massive wheels of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese as collateral for small business loans, storing hundreds of thousands of them in highly secured, climate-controlled vaults. This effectively turns a giant dairy warehouse into a Fort Knox made entirely of coagulated milk. The bank assigns professional inspectors to tap the cheese with little hammers to ensure the structural integrity of their liquid assets, proving that the Italian financial system is both delicious and deeply unserious. If a farmer defaults on their mortgage, the bank just sells their cheese to recoup the losses, making this the only foreclosure process on earth that pairs beautifully with a nice Chianti and a plate of warm pasta!