Weekly newsletter year XXXI, No. 14, 14 April 2025 - CONSOB AND ITS ACTIVITIES
Newsletter
News of the week:
Consob's annual meeting with the financial market
Crowdfunding: Rendimento Etico, Consob extends the suspension of the loan granting service
The Italian and the French authorities make proposals for a more competitive “Pilot Regime”
Watch for scams! Financial fraud: Consob blacks out 16 unauthorised websites
Consob participates in the OECD project on the use of AI in the Italian financial sector, an initiative promoted by the Bank of Italy – Encouraging the active participation of operators
N.B. measures adopted by Consob are published in the electronic Bulletin and, where envisaged, also in the Gazzetta Ufficiale. This newsletter summarises the more important or general measures and their disclosure here is therefore merely to update readers on Commission activities.
- NEWS OF THE WEEK -
On Friday 20 June 2025, CONSOB's annual meeting with the financial market will be held. The meeting is at 11:00 in Milan in Piazza Affari at the headquarters of Borsa Italiana in Palazzo Mezzanotte. The meeting will bring the celebrations for the 50th Anniversary of the Authority to a close. The live stream will be provided.
Following the previous resolution no. 23354 of 10 December 2024, Consob has suspended Rendimento Etico Srl, based in Milan, for a further year, from the provision of the crowdfunding service consisting of the intermediation in the granting of loans, pursuant to and for the purposes of Article 30 (2) (h) of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 of 7 October 2020 (resolution no. 23505 of 9 April 2025).
During the suspension period, the obligations assumed with project owners and investors in relation to offers already concluded for which the amounts acquired have yet to be returned to investors remain unchanged and must continue to be respected.
Within 60 days of the date of notification of the measure, the Company will inform Consob of the measures taken to restore the correct operating conditions; therefore, it will send monthly updates on the progress of the implementation of said measures. The related reports must be accompanied by the evaluations of the control bodies on the full effectiveness and adequacy of the remediation measures undertaken.
The suspension will be revoked once all the critical issues found have been fully and effectively resolved.
Rendimento Etico Srl, was authorised, by Consob provision no. 22887 of 10 November 2023, as a crowdfunding service provider for companies pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 to carry out the crowdfunding service referred to in Article 2, paragraph 1, letter a), sub-paragraph i), of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503, consisting of the intermediation in the granting of loans. Previously (from 2019 until 10 November 2023), Rendimento Etico was already operational in the lending crowdfunding sector under the previous national exemption regime, which did not provide for supervisory activities.
Since its entry into force in March 2023, the Pilot Regime has struggled to gain a foothold in the market, despite growing interest from market participants. In light of this, the Italian CONSOB and the French AMF are submitting proposals to the European Commission and the European co-legislators to create a more suitable regulatory framework to allow for a real development in experimentations of distributed ledger technology (DLT) by European market infrastructures.
The European Regulation on a Pilot Regime for market infrastructures based on distributed ledger technology (the "Pilot Regime"), provides a framework of regulatory exemptions to encourage market infrastructures to experiment with this technology for the trading, delivery and settlement of financial instruments.
In recent years, the development and use of the blockchain technology and of distributed ledgers (DLT) in financial markets, has accelerated. However, while there is now a relative consensus that blockchain is a technology that can bring transformative benefits and efficiencies to capital markets, the uptake of the Pilot Regime remains marginal.
Considering that the European Union needs to better encourage innovation and reap the potential benefits of this technology, in the context of the Savings an Investment Union, the CONSOB (Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa) and the AMF (Autorité des Marchés Financiers) propose ways to make the Pilot Regime more efficient in three areas:
- A more flexible regulatory framework to encourage experimentation
The Pilot Regime must play a more important role in allowing DLT experimentations, providing greater flexibility to market participants. To achieve this, it is essential to introduce greater proportionality, based on the size and nature of the project. At the same time, strengthening the role of ESMA will ensure consistency and convergence of practices across the European Union. Moreover, the use of electronic money tokens and tokenised deposits for transactions settlement could be authorised more widely, while supporting the rapid implementation of a solution for safe and efficient centralised money settlement of financial assets issued through DLT.
- Broaden the scope and ensure long-term visibility
To make the Regime more competitive, in particular compared to the regulatory frameworks in other financial centres, the eligibility and capitalisation limits for infrastructures could be raised to allow testing of larger-scale projects, while granting ESMA with powers to review such limits to more timely adapt to market developments. In addition, the list of eligible assets could be extended to include more diversified financial products, such as structured bonds and some derivatives. Lastly, extending the duration of the Pilot Regime and clarifying the exit process is necessary to allow the level of investment needed to develop long-term projects, by offering greater visibility to the investors.
- Developing interoperability and raising market awareness
To successfully integrate DLT technology into the European financial sector, gateways need to be built between DLT infrastructure and traditional systems. Therefore, the definition of common standards at European level is a crucial step to ensure the interoperability of systems between the different market participants and simplify processes for all stakeholders. Finally, it is important to raise awareness among issuers and investors of the opportunities offered by listing financial assets on DLT, in order to promote the adoption of this technology by all stakeholders.
"At a time when Europe wishes to develop its financial markets to meet its financing needs with the Savings and Investment Union, it is clearly a priority that Europe puts in place a competitive framework to encourage innovation, and market testing of distributed ledger technology, in order to better measure the potential benefits" have declared Paolo Savona, CONSOB chair, and Marie-Anne Barbat-Layani, AMF Chair.
Consob has ordered the black-out of 16 new websites promoting or providing financial services illegally.
The Authority availed itself of the powers deriving from the "Decreto crescita" ("Growth Decree"; Law no. 58 of 28 June 2019, Article no. 36, paragraph 2-terdecies), on the basis of which Consob can order Internet service providers to block access from Italy to websites offering financial services without the proper authorization.
Below are the websites Consob has ordered to be blacked out:
- "Quantum AI App Trading" (websites https://quantumaiapp.it and https://quantum-ai.in);
- "Newgrtdeals" (website https://newgrtdeals.com);
- "Piattaformaditradingdielonmusk" (website https://piattaformaditradingdielonmusk.it);
- "Quantum AI Co" (website https://quantumai.co);
- "Quantum AI Piattaforma and Quantum AI Official" (websites https://quantumaipiattaforma.it and https://quantumaiofficial.com);
- "Quantum AI Platform" (website https://quantumaiplatform.com);
- "Orbimount" (website https://orbimount.io and page https://trade.plf-tchb.com);
- "Zeon Global Ltd (website https://zeon-lim.com and page https://my.zeon-lim.com);
- "Hyper-trades" (website https://hyper-trades.com and page https://trade.hyper-trades.com);
- "Vex-Group" (website https://vex-group.pro);
- PO Trade Ltd (website https://po.life);
- Asset Management International Ltd (website https://assetmanagementint.com and page https://clientzone.assetmanagementint.com);
- "FPQuantumAI" (website https://fpquantumai.net);
- "Quantumworld" (website https://quantumworld.it and page https://cfd.earnpro99.com).
The number of websites blacked out since July 2019, when Consob got the power to order that the websites of fraudulent financial intermediaries be blacked out, has thus risen to 1291.
The measures adopted by Consob can be consulted on the website www.consob.it.
The black-out of these websites by Internet service providers operating on Italian territory is ongoing. For technical reasons, it can take several days for the black-out to come into effect.
Consob draws investors' attention to the importance of adopting the greatest diligence to make informed investment choices, adopting common sense behaviors, essential to safeguard their savings: these include, for websites that offer financial services, checking in advance that the operator with whom they are investing is authorized, and, for offers of financial products, that a prospectus has been published.
Please note, there is a section on the homepage of the www.consob.it website, entitled "Watch for Scams!", which provides useful information warning investors about fraudulent financial schemes.
The European Commission, through the Directorate-General for Structural Reform Support (DG Reform) and in collaboration with the OECD, has launched a project dedicated to the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Italian financial markets.
The initiative, promoted by the Bank of Italy as part of the Technical Support Instrument (TSI), is part of European policies to support structural reforms (https://www.bancaditalia.it/media/notizia/banca-d-italia-promuove-progetto-sull-intelligenza-artificiale-nel-settore-finanziario-italiano/).
The project, implemented with the contribution of MEF, Consob, Covip and Ivass, adopts a coordinated approach between the national financial authorities. The aim is to analyse the opportunities and risks associated with the use of AI, providing useful guidance for defining policies that encourage its safe and conscious adoption, while promoting innovation, stability and market integrity.
The OECD will produce a final report, scheduled for spring 2026, based on an analysis of the Italian context, an international comparison and a set of operational recommendations. Investigations with financial operators and supervisory authorities, as well as workshops with national and international stakeholders, are planned.
The active participation of operators is encouraged, as their contribution will be essential in defining a common strategy on the use of AI in the financial system, within an appropriate regulatory framework oriented towards sustainable growth.
Rendimento Etico Srl, based in Milan, has been suspended from providing the intermediation service in the granting of loans for a further year, pursuant to and for the purposes of Article 30 (2) (h) of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 of 7 October 2020 (resolution no. 23505 of 9 April 2025).
Order, pursuant to Article 7-octies, letter b) of Italian Legislative Decree no. 58 of 24 February 1998 (Consolidated Law on Finance) to cease infringement of Article 18 of said Consolidated Law on Finance, put in place by:
- "Quantum AI App Trading" websites https://quantumaiapp.it and https://quantum-ai.in (resolution no. 23520 of 9 April 2025);
- "Newgrtdeals" website https://newgrtdeals.com (resolution no. 23519 of 9 April 2025);
- "Piattaformaditradingdielonmusk" website https://piattaformaditradingdielonmusk.it (resolution no. 23518 of 9 April 2025);
- "Quantum AI Co" website https://quantumai.co (resolution no. 23517 of 9 April 2025);
- "Quantum AI Piattaforma and Quantum AI Official" websites https://quantumaipiattaforma.it and https://quantumaiofficial.com (resolution no. 23516 of 9 April 2025);
- "Quantum AI Platform" website https://quantumaiplatform.com (resolution no. 23515 of 9 April 2025);
- "Orbimount" website https://orbimount.io and page https://trade.plf-tchb.com) (resolution no. 23514 of 9 April 2025);
- "Zeon Global Ltd website https://zeon-lim.com and page https://my.zeon-lim.com (resolution no. 23513 of 9 April 2025);
- "Hyper-trades" website https://hyper-trades.com and page https://trade.hyper-trades.com (resolution no. 23512 of 9 April 2025);
- "Vex-Group" website https://vex-group.pro (resolution no. 23511 of 9 April 2025);
- PO Trade Ltd website https://po.life (resolution no. 23510 of 9 April 2025);
- Asset Management International Ltd website https://assetmanagementint.com and page https://clientzone.assetmanagementint.com (resolution no. 23509 of 9 April 2025);
- "FPQuantumAI" website https://fpquantumai.net (resolution no. 23508 of 9 April 2025);
- "Quantumworld" website https://quantumworld.it and page https://cfd.earnpro99.com (resolution no. 23507 of 9 April 2025).
CONSOB INFORMS (Rome Tribunal Registration no. 250 of 30/10/2013) Chief Editor: Manlio Pisu - Editorial board: Ilaria Fabbiani (coordinatrice), Pasquale Munafò, Laura Ferri, Claudia Amadio, Alfredo Gloria, Riccardo Carriero, Luca Cecchini - Address: CONSOB Via G. B. Martini, 3 - 00198 Rome - telephone: (06) 84771. Documents or reports can be submitted via the interactive section of the web site www.consob.it, where CONSOB INFORMA can also be consulted via the "newsletter" link.