Italy’s Companies and Exchange Commission (CONSOB) today announced it has issued orders for the blocking of access to eight websites operated by unauthorized investment firms.

Specifically, orders were issued to shut down five websites that were unlawfully providing investment services and activities relating to financial instruments, and three websites that were unlawfully providing services for crypto-assets.

The websites targeted by the latest orders are:

• Ucapitalinvest (website https://ucapitalinvest.com and associated page https://client.ucapitalinvest.com);
• Algo Quant Hft (website https://algo-quant-hft.ai and related page https://app.trade-algoquanthft.com);
• Lotment Capital (website https://trading-area.lotmentcapital-v3.com);
• golwire-limited.com (website https://goldwire-limited.com and associated page https://cfd.goldwire-limited.com);
• anima-capitalpartners.com (website https://anima-capitalpartners.com and related page https://cab.anima-partnerscapital.com);
• “Jgcmgs” (website https://jgcmgs.co);
• “Forte Valbit” (website https://fortevalbit.it);
• “BitGptApp” (website https://lagrovine.com).

This brings the total number of websites blocked by Consob since July 2019 to 1,712. Of these, 204 relate to crypto-asset-related activities.

In issuing the orders, the Authority has exercised the powers deriving from the “Growth Decree” and the MiCAR framework (EU Regulation and Legislative Decree No. 129/2024).

Internet service providers operating in Italy are currently in the process of blocking access to these websites. For technical reasons, it may take a few days for the block to take effect.

It is important that savers exercise the utmost care when making fully informed investment decisions, adopting common-sense practices that are essential for safeguarding their savings: among these, checking in advance, for websites offering investment services and crypto-assets, that the operator through which one is investing is authorised and, for offers of financial products and crypto-assets, that the prospectus or white paper has been published.

Consob also draws attention to the evolution of deceptive practices that exploit the Internet to steal users’ money and personal data: there has been an increase in the use of new tools, such as emails and ‘cloned’ websites, fake profiles of politicians and celebrities, and content generated using artificial intelligence systems – such as images, voices or videos – with the aim of inducing savers to make harmful investment choices.