Resolution no. 23261

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.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun

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.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun - which are active, available in Italian and registered anonymously - to trade futures and digital currencies through a trading platform;

ii. to place trading transactions, users must register with the website through a process that is also available to Italian users;

iii. with regard to traceability, the websites https://2139.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun contain references to the "2139 Exchange", with the e-mail "2139ex@gmail.com" specified;

WHEREAS the activity carried out via the websites https://2139.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun 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.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun, is still ongoing and is aimed at Italian investors, given that said websites are available in Italian and that no mechanism has been found to block registration by users attempting to register from Italy through Italian IP addresses; furthermore, in relation to said websites, contact with Italian customers via remote communication techniques has been reported and numerous complaints have been received from Italian investors who have complained of losses suffered on the "2139" platform and reported that potential customers also come into contact with said platform through word of mouth and Telegram groups under the names of "2139"and"Mega Investment";

WHEREAS the websites https://2139.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun 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 via the websites https://2139.online, https://2139.ltd and https://2139.fun and 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.

24 September 2024

THE CHAIRMAN
Paolo Savona