Italy's economy minister on Thursday defended his decision to raise taxes on cryptocurrency capital gains as part of next year's budget, despite pressure from some lawmakers in his own party to backtrack, Reuters reported. Giancarlo Giorgetti said savers should make a distinction between investments that finance tangible projects and cryptocurrencies, whose value he said is completely disconnected from underlying assets. "Cryptocurrencies present a very high level of risk," Giorgetti said.
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Italy
Italy is struggling to find a "strategic" buyer for its stake in lender Monte dei Paschi di Siena before a year-end deadline, leaving it with little alternative but to turn to the market and broaden a fragmented shareholder base, Reuters reported. Italy must cut its 26.7% stake below 20% by the end of December to show the European Union authorities it no longer controls MPS, in line with re-privatisation commitments agreed during a 2017 bailout. The original EU deadline was extended after Italy failed to sell MPS to UniCredit in 2021.
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The Italian electric motorcycle maker Energica has officially declared that it is ceasing operations and entering bankruptcy proceedings, ending speculation about the company’s precarious financial situation, Electrek.co reported. After reducing its workforce by around 70% recently, among other measures to tighten its purse strings, the famed Italian electric motorcycle maker’s board made the decision to enter bankruptcy proceedings after its latest meeting this week.
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Like wine-growing heartlands everywhere from Bordeaux to Napa Valley, Lombardy’s Oltrepò Pavese region is grappling with two historic challenges: a changing climate and changing tastes. It’s been incredibly rainy in northern Italy this year. Fungi took hold of some vines, and had to be dealt with hastily, Bloomberg News reported. At the same time, great viniculture nations like Italy are having to adapt to the waning popularity of red wine, as younger drinkers opt for trendy craft beers and fizzy whites — or swear off alcohol entirely.
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Italy’s far-right government has approved a budget for next year of about 30 billion euros ($33 billion), which officials say will be partly funded by a levy on Italian banks and insurers, the Associated Press reported. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said late Tuesday that the government expected to raise some 3.5 billion euros from banks and insurance companies to ensure better public services, especially the country's struggling health service, and help the most vulnerable citizens.
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Italy plans to raise taxes on the companies that benefitted most from the economic turbulence of recent years in order to help bring down the country’s budget deficit, Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said, Bloomberg News reported. Giorgetti said that he is looking at levies that would apply to companies in a number of industries, without offering any further detail. Italy’s benchmark stock index fell as much as 1.5%. The 57-year-old finance chief faces a delicate balancing act in trying to persuade Italian executives to accept his plans without provoking a public backlash.
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Germany’s government decided to keep its stake in Commerzbank until further notice, after a sale of a portion of its shares to Italy’s UniCredit sparked speculation about a potential takeover, The Wall Street Journal reported. The German government — the biggest shareholder in Commerzbank — said Friday that it won’t offload any additional shares in the bank following the sale to UniCredit for 702 million euros ($783.5 million) completed last week, which reduced its ownership to 12% from 16.49%.
In a story that reads like the script of a Hollywood film, one of the world’s most famous musicians, Canadian rapper Drake, emerged as the unlikely hero for an Italian club on the brink of financial collapse, World Soccer Talk reported. Venezia, a club steeped in history but battling financial turmoil, found an unexpected lifeline in Drake. His intervention was crucial in saving the club from bankruptcy and ensuring its survival. The Winged Lions, based in the iconic city of Venice, experienced a rollercoaster ride in recent years.