Resolution no. 23277

Order, pursuant to article 7-octies, paragraph 1, letter b) of Legislative Decree no. 58/1998 ("Consolidated Law on Finance") to cease the infringement of article 18 of the Consolidated Law on Finance carried out via the websites https://2139.one, https://2139.nl, https://2139a.com and https://2139.lol

LA COMMISSIONE NAZIONALE PER LE SOCIETÀ E LA BORSA
[THE NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR COMPANIES AND THE STOCK EXCHANGE]

HAVING REGARD to Law no. 216 of 7 June 1974, as subsequently amended and supplemented;

HAVING REGARD to Legislative Decree no. 58 of 24 February 1998 ("Consolidated Law on Finance"), as subsequently amended and supplemented;

HAVING ESTABLISHED that, from checks on the web, it emerged that:

i. potential investors are offered the opportunity via the websites https://2139.one, https://2139.nl, https://2139a.com and https://2139.lol - which are active, available in Italian and anonymously registered - to trade futures and digital currencies via a trading platform;

ii. in order to place trades, users must register with the website through a process that is also available to users connecting from Italy;

iii. as to traceability, in the websites https://2139.one, https://2139.nl, https://2139a.com and https://2139.lol there are references to the "2139 Exchange", of which the email address "2139ex@gmail.com" is indicated;

HAVING REGARD to resolution no. 23261 of 24 September 2024, whereby the aforementioned "2139 Exchange" was ordered to cease its infringement of article 18 of the Consolidated Law on Finance conducted through the separate websites https://2139.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun;

WHEREAS the websites https://2139.one, https://2139.nl, https://2139a.com and https://2139.lol feature content and graphic format that are identical to those of the aforementioned websites https://2139.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun;

WHEREAS the activity carried out via the websites https://2139.one, https://2139.nl, https://2139a.com and https://2139.lol constitutes the provision of investment services, as referred to in article 1, paragraph 5, of the Consolidated Law on Finance, insofar as users are offered the opportunity via the aforementioned domains to register and open a trading account and place orders to buy and/or sell financial instruments;

WHEREAS the above activity, carried out via the websites https://2139.one, https://2139.nl, https://2139a.com and https://2139.lol, is still ongoing and is aimed at Italian investors, given that said websites are available in Italian and that no mechanism was found that blocked registration by users attempting to register on the website from Italy through Italian IP addresses; moreover, in relation to said websites, cold calling of Italian consumers has also been reported and complaints were received from Italian retail investors who complained of losses suffered in the "2139" platform and reported that potential customers come into contact with said platform also through word of mouth and Telegram groups under the names of "2139" and "Mega Investment";

WHEREAS the https://2139.one, https://2139.nl, https://2139a.com and https://2139.lol websites cannot be attributed to any entity authorised to provide investment services to the Italian public;

HAVING REGARD TO the requirement to hold a relevant licence to provide investment services and activities as per article 18, paragraph 1, of the Consolidated Law on Finance, pursuant to which "The professional provision of investment services and activities to the public is reserved to Italian investment firms, EU investment firms, Italian banks, EU banks and non-EU firms";

HAVING ESTABLISHED, therefore, that the operations in question qualify as the professional provision of investment services to the Italian public, in infringement of article 18, paragraph 1 of the Consolidated Law on Finance;

HAVING REGARD to the fact that, according to the provisions of article 7-octies, letter b) of the Consolidated Law on Finance - "Powers to counteract unauthorised provision of investment services" - Consob "may, with regard to anyone who offers or carries out investment services or activities over the Internet without being qualified to do so pursuant to this decree: […] b) order the cessation of the breach";

CONSIDERING it therefore necessary, in the light of the foregoing, to adopt this Resolution immediately for reasons of urgency;

RESOLVES:

To order the cessation of the infringement of Art. 18 of Legislative Decree no. 58/98 performed through the websites https://2139.one, https://2139.nl, https://2139a.com and https://2139.lol, consisting of the provision of investment services and activities to the Italian public.

This Resolution shall be brought to the attention of the concerned parties and published in the Consob Bulletin.

This measure may be appealed before the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio within 60 days of the date of service.

9 October 2024

THE CHAIRMAN
Paolo Savona