Apparently, this is a true story that has recently appeared on a US newspaper. I really don't know if this story is actually true, but knowing Italians I would not be surprised to learn that this really happened. The original story I have received has been translated in Italian from someone who didn't pass along the source URL. So I went ahead and re-translated it into English. I have later found through Google multiple references several online instances of this story, though the details differ quite a bit. "About a month ago, an Italian entered a New York bank and asked to speak with an agent dealing with money loans. The Italian gentleman told the bank agent that he needed to go to Italy for a couple of weeks and needed to borrow about USD $ 5,000. The bank agent naturally informed the Italian gentleman that the bank required some form of guarantee in order to approve such operation. At that point the Italian took out the keys of a Ferrari which was nicely parked in front of the bank. He also submitted the circulation permit and the insurance documents that he had with him."