Enzo Serata, the director of the Bank of Italy’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF), raised concerns on Wednesday about “the ongoing threat of the legal economy being contaminated by organised crime.”
During a hearing in the Lower House, Serata discussed the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP). The initiative aims at making the Italian economy greener and more modern with the support of over €190billion in EU grants and low-interest loans.
He described the NRRP funds as “an extraordinary opportunity for development and growth,” but also cautioned that they present “additional opportunities for criminal organisations,” which may seek to infiltrate sectors benefiting from public contracts and influence public administration through various forms of corruption.
Serata also highlighted that the UIF estimates the value of money laundering in Italy to be around €25-35billion annually during the 2018-2022 period. That accounted for roughly 1.5-2.0% of the GDP.
He also noted a UIF study had revealed that “more than 106,000 companies, about 2% of the total registered in the business registry between 2005 and 2020, were potentially linked to organised crime.”
