Savers protesting Italy's bad
banks scandal called a sit-in Monday outside the former
headquarters of the old Banca Marche di Jesi in the latest in a
rash of demonstrations by small investors left with worthless
bonds.
Premier Matteo Renzi Monday reiterated that the government
will give priority to legislative reforms to increase protection
for small savers.
"From cooperative credit banks to bankruptcy law that has
to change … we have a very great deal to do in Italy," he said.
Consumer protection watchdog bodies Adusbef and
Federconsumatori said they were presenting a further legal
memorandum to nine public prosecutor's offices asking
magistrates to start criminal proceedings against Consob stock
exchange watchdog, President Giuseppe Vegas, and other officials
on grounds that they turned a blind eye to irregularities by bad
banks.
The Bank of Italy last Wednesday started the sale process
for four 'good banks' recently split from the bad banks after a
government rescue that left many investors with worthless bonds.
The four are Nuova Banca Marche, Nuova Banca Etruria, Nuova
Cassa di Risparmio di Chieti and Nuova Cassa di Risparmio di
Ferrara.
The process was started in concert with the Italian
government and EU authorities, and will comply with EU rules on
State aid.
The government has set up a 100-million-euro fund to
compensate investors who can prove they were duped into holding
risky bonds.
Thousands of former bondholders and ex-shareholders are
demanding their money back after seeing their savings go up in
smoke.
A probe for instigation to suicide has been opened after one
desperate bondholder in Banca Etruria, Luigi D'Angelo, hanged
himself in December.
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