Regulation (EU) No 537/2014 on statutory audits of Public Interest Entities, which entered into force on June 17th, 2016, introduced an obligation for the authorities responsible for the oversight of auditors of Public Interest Entities in the Member States to publish a list, to be updated annually, containing the statutory auditors and audit firms which, in the previous calendar year, received less than 15% of the total audit fees from Public Interest Entities in the Member State concerned.

This provision, set out in Article 16, paragraph 3, third subparagraph, of the aforementioned EU Regulation, was introduced to avoid excluding from selection procedures for the award of audit engagements on Public Interest Entities those entities which, in the previous calendar year, recorded a less significant turnover from Public Interest Entities.

Point a) of paragraph 1 of the same Article 16 provides that “the tender process does not in any way preclude the participation in the selection procedure” of such entities.

The provision does not introduce an obligation for Public Interest Entities to invite to the selection procedure for the award of audit engagements all entities below the aforementioned 15% threshold. Indeed, the same Article 16, point a), provides that “the audited entity shall be free to invite any statutory auditors or audit firms to submit proposals”, while laying down the condition that such entities must not be precluded from participating in the tender procedure.

This is also the position expressed in this regard by the offices of the European Commission, which clarified that the purpose of this provision is not to limit the freedom of Public Interest Entities to invite audit firms to tender procedures, but rather to open the market to small and medium-sized audit firms by ensuring that, during the selection phase, they are not penalised by criteria that could restrict or exclude their participation.

Consob is therefore required to publish annually a list containing all audit firms that currently carry out engagements for Public Interest Entities and whose turnover in 2025 was below 15% of the total turnover recorded at national level, as well as, in accordance with the wording of the aforementioned provision, the additional audit firms and individual statutory auditors entered in the Register of Statutory Auditors held by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, which currently do not carry out any engagements for Public Interest Entities, as they also fall within the category of entities with turnover from Public Interest Entities below the aforementioned 15% threshold.

On the basis of the information provided by the auditors subject to Consob supervision which currently carry out engagements for Public Interest Entities, the names of the audit firms that recorded, during 2025[1], turnover from Public Interest Entities respectively above and below 15% of the relevant national turnover are listed below in alphabetical order. For the search, display and extraction of information relating to the names of the remaining audit firms and individual statutory auditors which currently do not carry out engagements for Public Interest Entities, reference should be made to the specific “Statutory Audit” section of the website of the Ministry of Economy and Finance.