Italy’s Companies and Exchange Commission (CONSOB) has ordered the blocking of five new websites that illegally offer financial services.
The sites targeted by the latest orders are:
- Imperialcap24 Limited and Top Markets Ltd (website and related page
- “AfexEU” (website www.afexeultd.com and related pages and
- “Bitblanco” (website www.bitblanco.io);
- “INVESTRIUM” (website and pages and
- “FameFX24” (website and related pages and
The Authority made use of the powers deriving from the “development decree” (law no. 58 of 28 June 2019, article 36, paragraph 2-terdecies), under which Consob can order Internet connectivity service providers to prevent access from Italy to websites through which financial services are offered without the necessary authorization.
In issuing the orders, the Authority made use of the powers deriving from the “Decreto crescita” (“Development Decree”, Law no. 58 of June 28, 2019, article 36, paragraph 2-terdecies), under which Consob can to order Internet service providers to block access from Italy to websites offering financial services without proper authorization.
The number of websites taken down since July 2019, when Consob got the power to order the websites of fraudulent financial intermediaries, has risen to 1,047.
The shutdown of these websites by ISPs continues. For technical reasons, it may take several days for the block to take effect.
Consob draws the attention of investors to the importance of adopting greater diligence in order to make informed investment choices, adopting common sense behaviors necessary to safeguard their savings: these include, for websites offering financial services, the prior checking of operator with whom they are authorized to invest and, for financial product offerings, a prospectus has been published.