Weekly newsletter year XXXI, No. 7, 24 February 2025 - CONSOB AND ITS ACTIVITIES
Newsletter
News of the week:
Save the Date: 14 March 2025 Fifty years of Consob: between the present and the future. Reflections in Bocconi
New Consob intervention against crypto-asset operators, offering of a token blocked - Beware of "squared scams". Consob warns those who have already been scammed against the risks of fake debt collection - Six sites blacked out
Assignments of office in Consob
Commission decisions
Management decisions
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 14 March 2025 from 9 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Consob and Bocconi University are organising a study day to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the birth of the Financial Markets Regulatory and Supervisory Authority in Italy, at the SDA Bocconi, Auditorium Grande, Via Sarfatti 10, in Milan.
The study day intends to investigate the challenges on the role and functions of Consob in the context of the evolution of financial markets, the transformations underway and the process of integration of capital markets at European level, with interventions from authoritative experts in the relevant scientific subjects and institutions.
The day will begin with institutional greetings from Francesco Billari (Rector of Bocconi University), Paolo Savona (President of Consob) and Piergaetano Marchetti (Professor Emeritus of Bocconi University).
Marco Ventoruzzo (Bocconi University), scientific coordinator of the study day, will present the introductory report by Federico Freni (State Secretary at the Ministry of the Economy and Finance) on the Reform of the TUF.
The event is organised in four sessions:
Session I – The financial market: prospects
The event will be chaired by: Federico Cornelli (Consob member), and will be followed by presentations by:
Stefano Caselli (Bocconi University) - Intermediation
Maurizio Dallocchio (Bocconi University) - Markets
Giovanni Petrella (Catholic University of the Sacred Heart) - Investors
Massimo Belcredi (Catholic University of the Sacred Heart) - Issuers
Silvia Rovere President of Poste Italiane - Non-banking intermediation
Session II – The Rules: prospects
Chaired by: Chiara Mosca Bocconi University, Consob member, followed by presentations by:
Mario Nava (Bocconi University) - National legislation and community law
Lucia Calvosa (University of Pisa) - Corporate governance
Luigi Arturo Bianchi (Bocconi University) - Governance models
Gaetano Presti (Catholic University of the Sacred Heart) - The control market
Session III – Innovation and sustainability
Chaired by: Gabriella Alemanno Consob member, followed by presentations by:
Barbara Alemanni (University of Genoa) - The ecological transition
Enrico Giovannini (University of Rome "Tor Vergata") - Financing sustainable development
Giuseppe Francesco Italiano (Luiss Guido Carli) - The technological challenge
Donato Masciandaro (Bocconi University) - The financial and monetary system
Session IV – Towards Savings and Investment Union through Capital Markets
Chaired by: Carlo Comporti Consob Commissioner, speeches will also be given by:
Piero Cipollone, Member of the ECB Board;
Carmine Di Noia, Director DAF OECD;
Laura van Geest, AFM Chair;
Enrico Letta, President Jacques Delors Institute;
Verena Ross, Chair Esma;
David Wright, Eurofi Chairman.
Andrea Sironi (President of Bocconi University) and Paolo Savona (President of Consob) will conclude the day.
The event will be held in Italian (morning sessions) and in English (afternoon session). A simultaneous translation service is provided. The poster, available on the Consob website, gives the detailed programme.
To participate in person, you must register at the following link: https://eventi.unibocconi.it/index.php?key=ev2025010083, indicating your preference for the entire day or just the morning or afternoon session.
The event can also be streamed on the YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/live/K4YfWl08T5g.
New Consob intervention related to crypto-assets to protect savers. For the first time, the Authority, exercising its new powers under the European industry regulations (MiCAR), has blocked (resolution no. 23433 of 19 February 2025) a website (www.intelligenza-ai.com) offering a token to the public for which the information document (the so-called white paper) had not been duly notified.
Last week, Consob had intervened (resolutions no. 23422 and 23423 of 12 February 2025), on the other hand, to block, under MiCAR, some operators who were providing services on crypto-assets without the proper authorisations.
Moreover, Consob has issued a Warning on "squared scams", against those that present themselves as offering debt collection for those who have already been victims of a financial scam.
The intention is to warn savers about the phenomenon of so-called fake debt collection in which individuals who present themselves as self-proclaimed lawyers appointed by Consob make an offer to investors - including the unauthorised use of the logo or other distinguishing marks of Consob or other Authorities - to obtain, for a fee, the refund of sums of money lost in previous investments, without then providing any service.
Meanwhile, enforcement actions against financial abuse continue. Consob has blacked out the following five abusive financial intermediation websites:
- "Revolutfx", website www.revolutfx.net and its page https://client.revolutfx.net (resolution no. 23438 of 20 February 2025);
- Macan Holdings Ltd, website www.macanlimited-holdingsltd.com and its page https://trd.macanlimited-holdingsltd.com (resolution no. 23436 of 20 February 2025);
- "Emeraltrade", website www.emeraltrade.com and its page https://trade.emeraltrade.com (resolution no. 23435 of 20 February 2025);
- "ITradinFX", website www.itradingfx.com and its pages https://account.itradingfx.com and https://tradingapi.tradingchart.io (resolution no. 23437 of 20 February 2025);
- "TSAFGroup", website www.tsafgroup.com and its page https://client.tsafgroup.com (resolution no. 23434 of 20 February 2025).
A total of six websites have been blacked out this week. The number of websites blacked out since July 2019, when Consob was given the power to order the black-out of websites of fraudulent financial intermediaries, has thus risen to 1232.
The measures 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 in order to make informed investment choices, adopting common sense behaviours, essential to safeguard their savings: these include, for websites offering financial services, checking in advance that the operator with whom they are investing is authorised, and, for offers of financial products, that a prospectus or the white paper 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.
Consob has assigned Antonella Nibaldi, director, to the office of the Head of Corruption Prevention and Transparency, and Arianna Fracassi, senior advisor, to the office of the Head of Personal Data Protection, effective from 24 February 2025 (resolutions no. 23429 and no. 23430 of 19 February 2025).
As from the same date, 24 February 2025, Antonella Nibaldi ended her position as Head of the Public Relations Office of the Communication Division and the position was assigned, ad interim, to Manlio Pisu, Head of the aforementioned Division.
Antonella Nibaldi is responsible for the fully autonomous and effective performance of all the activities attributed by law to the Head of Corruption Prevention and Transparency, or the exercise, in full autonomy, of the powers provided for by law for the purposes of carrying out corruption prevention tasks, including those concerning the implementation of the transparency obligations pursuant to Legislative Decree no. 33 of 14 March 2013.
Arianna Fracassi is responsible for carrying out, in full autonomy and independence, the following tasks and functions:
a) inform and advise the controller or processor and the employees performing the processing about the obligations arising from Regulation (EU) 2016/679, as well as other national or Union provisions relating to data protection;
b) monitor compliance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679, other national or Union provisions relating to data protection, as well as the policies of the controller or processor regarding the protection of personal data, including the attribution of responsibilities, awareness and training of personnel involved in processing and related control activities;
c) provide, if requested, an opinion on the data protection impact assessment and monitor its performance pursuant to Article 35 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679;
d) cooperate with the Italian Data Protection Authority;
e) act as a point of contact with the Italian Data Protection Authority for matters related to processing, including prior consultation pursuant to Article 36 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679, and carry out, where appropriate, consultations relating to any other matter;
f) maintain the register of processing activities.
The tasks of the Data Protection Officer relate to all the data processing carried out by Consob.
- The marketing in Italy of units of the non-reserved closed-end European Long-Term Investment Fund "Anthilia ELTIF synthesis" has been authorised, pursuant to Article 4-quinquies.1 of Legislative Decree no. 58/98, operated by Anthilia Capital Partners Sgr Spa (decision of 19 February 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:
- Revolutfx via the website www.revolutfx.net and its page https://client.revolutfx.net (resolution no. 23438 of 20 February 2025);
- Macan Holdings Ltd via the www.macanlimited-holdingsltd.com website and its https://trd.macanlimited-holdingsltd.com page (resolution no. 23436 of 20 February 2025);
- Emeraltrade via the website www.emeraltrade.com and its page https://trade.emeraltrade.com (resolution no. 23435 of 20 February 2025);
- ITradinFX via the website www.itradingfx.com and its pages https://account.itradingfx.com and https://tradingapi.tradingchart.io (resolution no. 23437 of 20 February 2025);
- TSAFGroup via the website www.tsafgroup.com and its page https://client.tsafgroup.com (resolution no. 23434 of 20 February 2025).
The Head of the Intermediary Supervision and Investor Protection Division of Consob, on the basis of the provisions of resolution no. 22888 of 15 November 2023, accepted the request for forfeiture due to express waiver by Envent Capital Markets Limited of the authorisation to exercise investment services/activities and ancillary services of: placement without irrevocable commitment to the issuer referred to in Article 1, paragraph 5, letter c-bis) of the Consolidated Law on Finance (TUF), without holding, even temporarily, customers' liquid assets and financial instruments; providing advice to undertakings on capital structure, industrial strategy and related matters, as well as advice and services relating to mergers and the purchase of undertakings referred to in Annex 1, section B, number 3, of the Consolidated Law on Finance and investment research and financial analysis or other forms of general recommendation concerning transactions in financial instruments, referred to in Annex 1, section B, number 5, of the Consolidated Law on Finance, with the resulting deletion of the same company from the register of third-country companies other than banks referred to in Article 20, paragraph 1, of the same legislative decree. The full text of Decision no. 126 of 20 February 2025 is available on the website www.consob.it.
CONSOB INFORMS (Rome Tribunal Registration no. 250 of 30/10/2013) Chief Editor: Manlio Pisu - Editorial board: Antonella Nibaldi (coordinator), Claudia Amadio, Riccardo Carriero, Luca Cecchini, Laura Ferri, Chiara Tomaiuoli, Alfredo Gloria, Ilaria Fabbiani - 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.