(Finance) – The Cabinet approved the legislative decree for the adaptation of the national legislation on crowdfunding to the provisions of the EU regulation 2020/1503, which introduces a new harmonized regime at European Union level, with the possibility of joining the same by operators through a specific authorization from the competent national authority.
The new regime establishes, inter alia, uniform requirements for the provision of services of crowdfunding, for the organization, authorization and supervision of the providers, for the functioning of the platforms and as regards transparency and marketing communications.
Also expected a single authorization for operatorswith a comprehensive passporting regime (registered by ESMA) and transparency and platform governance requirements that will make it easier for investors and fund seekers to compare EU crowdfunding market offerings more accurately.
In October the Consob and the Bank of Italy had communicated the start of discussions with the operators of crowdfunding platforms in view of the entry into force of the new European rules. The two institutions have been designated as competent authorities for the authorization and supervision of crowdfunding service providers.
The approval of single Community rules on the subject is based on the conviction of European legislators that crowdfunding can contribute to provide SMEs with access to finance it’s at complete the capital markets union. Crowdfunding represents an increasingly important type of intermediation in which the crowdfunding service provider, without assuming any risk of its own, operates a digital platform open to the public to create or facilitate the matching between potential investors or lenders and businesses seeking funding.
Before the regulation, the differences between existing national regulations were such that hinder cross-border supply of crowdfunding services and therefore directly affected the functioning of the internal market for such services. In particular, the fact that the legal framework was fragmented along national borders created substantial legal costs for retail investors who often faced difficulties in determining which rules apply to cross-border crowdfunding services.