Rome , Italy ( CNN ) -- Italy has the highest rate of bank robberies in Europe , an Italian study said this week . Of the 4,150 bank robberies that were reported in Europe in 2009 , 1,744 -- or 42 percent -- were done in Italy , according to the study , which was carried out by the Italian bank watchdog Osservatorio and a trade union , CISL . Northern Italian cities , including Milan and Turin , saw the highest numbers of bank robberies , said the study , which was released Wednesday . One of the reasons Italy sees so many robberies is high cash liquidity , it said . The majority of robberies involve direct intimidation , including kidnapping the relatives of a bank employee , the study said . The result for staff is absenteeism , low productivity , difficulty concentrating , disturbed sleep , an anxious state of mind , complications in personal relationships , and irritability , it said . The amount of money lost from bank theft in Italy in 2009 was 36.8 million euros ( $ 48 million ) , the Italian Association of Banks ( ABI ) calculated . ABI has carried out its own studies of the bank robbery phenomenon , the Italian daily La Stampa reported . It found that in two out of every three robberies , the thieves made off with about 15,000 euros ( $ 18,600 ) and took less than three minutes . It also found thieves preferred to use small knives and paper cutters as weapons , and that most robberies happened on Mondays and Fridays . The Osservatorio-CISL study and the one by ABI said Italian banks spend more than 700 million euros ( $ 870 million ) every year on anti-theft equipment such as closed-circuit cameras and alarms . CNN 's Hada Messia contributed to this report .
Italy has the most bank robberies in all of Europe . Italy had 1,744 bank robberies last year , study finds . Most robberies involve direct intimidation of staff .