ITALY Trends and Developments Contributed by: Giuseppe Fornari, Enrico Di Fiorino, Emanuele Angiuli and Lorena Morrone, Fornari e Associati Studio Legale
to whistle-blowing regulations, and are constantly updated. The Resolution 311/2023 was updated by Resolution No 479 on 26 November 2025. On the same day, with Resolution No 478, ANAC approved new guidelines on internal whistle-blowing channels. The aim is to ensure a uniform and effective application of whistle- blowing rules, and to provide further guidance to the entities required to implement them. In addition to public sector bodies, the whistle-blow - ing legislation is applicable to: • entities that have employed an average of at least 50 employees in the past year (with fixed-term or open-ended contracts); • entities operating in specific sectors (banking, credit, investment, insurance and reinsurance, pro - fessional pensions or individual pension products, securities, investment funds, payment services), even with an average number of fewer than 50 employees in the past year; and • entities that have adopted organisational and man - agement models pursuant to Legislative Decree No 231/2001 (“231 Models”), even with an average of fewer than 50 employees in the past year. The requirements that the entities identified by the Decree must fulfil can be summarised as follows: • identification of the reporting manager (internal or external, monocratic, or collegial); • identification of the internal reporting channel; • adoption of a whistle-blowing policy; • updating 231 Models, the Code of Ethics and any internal documentation mentioning the reporting channels; • privacy obligations; • information provided to persons inside and outside the organisation; and • training of employees and the manager (if internal).
First of all, each entity must ensure the adoption of a policy that fully regulates whistle-blowing within the organisation itself. It is advisable for this activity to be entrusted to a lawyer or to a qualified person with specific expertise in the field (possibly outside the organisation). Specifically, the policy must: • define the role and tasks of the individuals respon - sible for managing the reports; • identify the methods and terms of data retention; • provide and regulate different reporting methods (in written and oral form); • provide for procedures that guarantee the confi - dentiality of the person making the report, of the other persons indicated by the Decree, and of the content of the report; and • provide for staff awareness-raising and training ini - tiatives to disseminate the purposes of the whistle- blowing policy and the procedure for its use. At the same time, private sector entities that have adopted 231 Models will have to update them. The Decree has provided that the latter regulate the inter - nal reporting channels, the prohibition of retaliation and the disciplinary system. Alternatively, 231 Models must contain an explicit reference to the policy. European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) As for the latest EPPO annual report there were: • 3,602 investigations underway, allegedly causing approximately EUR45.01 billion in financial damage to the EU; • 275 indictments (34% more than in 2024); and • freezing orders for assets worth EUR1.13 billion requested and granted by judges. In specific relation to Italy, 635 investigations were opened, 791 people were indicted in total and EUR59.74 million in frozen assets was accumulated. Finally, details of judicial activity showed 279 ongoing proceedings, 41 first instance judgments, 29 convic - tions and eight acquittals. Of these proceedings, 99 were for money-laundering, 24 for corruption, 16 for embezzlement and 310 for VAT fraud.
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