Resolution no. 22702

Order, pursuant to article 7-octies, paragraph 1, letter b) of Legislative Decree no. 58/1998 ("Consolidated Law on Finance") to cease the breach of article 18 of the Consolidated Law on Finance carried out via the https://globalnewstrade.top website and the https://webtrader.glblntrd.top page

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:

1. potential investors are offered the opportunity via the https://globalnewstrade.top website – which is active, registered anonymously and also available in Italian – to trade CFDs on currencies, shares, indices, and commodities;
2. in order to place such trades, users must register with the https://globalnewstrade.top website through a process that is also available for Italian users, open an account and deposit relevant funds;
3. in particular, six types of account are mentioned on the website https://globalnewstrade.top, referred to as “Easy start”, “Standard”, “Pro”, “ Trader Pro”, “Premium”, and “VIP”, depending on the minimum deposit required and the benefits offered;
4. following registration, the customer accesses the reserved area of the website via which it is possible to open a trading account and access the trading platform at addresshttps://webtrader.glblntrd.top, selecting the “webtrader” link;
5. as to traceability, a general reference is made to “Global News” on the https://globalnewstrade.top website;

WHEREAS the activity carried out via the https://globalnewstrade.top website and the https://webtrader.glblntrd.top page are to be considered as 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, through the aforementioned domains, to open a trading account and place orders to buy and/or sell financial instruments;

WHEREAS the aforementioned activity, carried out via the https://globalnewstrade.top website and the https://webtrader.glblntrd.top page, is ongoing and is aimed at Italian investors, given that the https://globalnewstrade.top website is available in Italian, and there have been reports of cold calls being made to retail investors in Italy in relation to the initiatives promoted via the said website; Furthermore, complaints have been received from Italian retail investors who complained about not being able to obtain a refund of the capital deposited to trade via the website https://globalnewstrade.top and it was ascertained that there are no mechanisms aimed at preventing registration by users who attempt to register with the said website from Italy via Italian IP addresses;

WHEREAS the https://globalnewstrade.top website and the https://webtrader.glblntrd.top page may not be linked to any entity authorised to provide investment services and activities to the Italian public, given that “Global News”, i.e. the company which is mentioned on the https://globalnewstrade.top website, does not appear on the register kept by CONSOB pursuant to article 20 of the Consolidated Law on Finance;

HAVING REGARD to the fact that the provision of investment services and activities is reserved to licensed parties as referred to under 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”;

CONSIDERING therefore that the operations in question qualify as the professional provision of investment services to the Italian public, in breach 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 infringement of article 18 of Legislative Decree no. 58/98 committed via the https://globalnewstrade.top website and the https://webtrader.glblntrd.top page, constituted by the offer and provision of investment services and activities to the Italian public.

This Resolution shall be brought to the attention of all the interested 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.

18 May 2023

THE CHAIRMAN
Paolo Savona