Italy is reportedly considering increasing fines for crypto-related offenses as part of efforts to curb market manipulations.
According to Reuters, Italy’s government is contemplating tougher penalties for individuals involved in manipulating the crypto market, based on a draft decree.
Under the proposed legislation, fines ranging from €5,000 to €5 million ($5,400 to $5.4 million) could be imposed for offenses such as insider trading, unauthorized disclosure of inside information, and market manipulation. The decree assigns oversight of crypto activities primarily to the Bank of Italy and market regulator Consob, empowering them to uphold financial stability and ensure orderly market functioning.
In early 2023, the Bank of Italy underscored the necessity for a robust regulatory framework focused on stablecoins to mitigate potential risks, including the threat of a destabilizing “run” on these digital assets. The financial regulator emphasized the critical need for regulatory oversight, especially concerning stablecoin issuers, given their significant integration into decentralized finance.
Subsequently, Italy’s central bank announced the establishment of a supervisory framework in preparation for the implementation of the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), which sets forthcoming regulatory standards across the European Union’s crypto industry.
However, the extent of implementation of this supervisory framework remains unclear. At the time, Ignazio Visco, the former governor of the Bank of Italy, stated that the central bank’s surveys indicated only about 2% of Italian households held “modest amounts, on average,” of cryptocurrencies. Additionally, the exposure of Italian financial intermediaries to the crypto market was reported to be very limited.
