AgriCorporateFinance Srl-the ‘financial aircraft carrier’ of Coldiretti and Federconsorzi 2 (1)-is yet another fiasco of the Coldiretti magic circle, as always at the expense of Italian farmers and ranchers. #CleanSpades.
1) AGRICORPORATEFINANCE, THE LAUNCHING
‘The Coldiretti Point’ announced in bombastic tones on 13.2.20 AgriCorporateFinance as ‘the Network of Enterprises promoted by Coldiretti that aims to provide concrete support for the development of Made in Italy. The latest development in the area of credit, financial and insurance brokerage, for an offering that is both structured and comprehensive, while also specializing in the agricultural, agribusiness and agroindustrial sectors, ranging from cereals to dairy, from the olive and wine sectors, from fishing to livestock improvement.’ (2) Rich prizes and cotillions, in words.
1.1) Credit, financial and insurance brokerage
‘AgriCorporateFinance was established with the intention of offering a range of products and services aimed at financial and insurance needs, business investment needs, as well as personal needs, grasping the facets of diversified customer demands and needs, from the protection of one’s own assets, to that of family members and employees. Highly qualified services offered to our clientele include:
– assistance in obtaining financing, mortgage loans, advance application for community aid, advance payment of RDP contributions, instrumental, energy and real estate leasing, (…)
– surety guarantees, through established relationships with the most representative public guarantee entities, such as Ismea, Mediocredito Centrale, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, (…)‘. (2)
1.2) Specific and ‘competitive‘ services
The lofty promises of the Coldiretti magic circle included the offer of:
– ‘specific services for individuals‘ such as ‘assistance aimed at obtaining home loans and assistance aimed at obtaining consumer loans (car, electronics, other durable goods), (…)
– insurance consulting, aimed at the company and the individual, with exclusive products for coverage on the risk arising from adverse weather conditions, livestock, multi-risk policies, accident and life policies, not to mention automobile liability, (…)
– Business consulting for debt restructuring and business analysis. Low costs, the most competitive in the market, short lead times and certainty in responses are, finally, the company’s figure‘. (2)
1.3) The ‘corporate figure’
The real ‘corporate figure’ of AgriCorporateFinance – like those of Germina Campus SpA, Agritel Srl, Consorzio Sistema Servizi Coldiretti SCpA, Filiera Agricola Italiana (FAI) SpA, Campagna Amica, Green Assicurazioni Srl, in the galaxy of Palazzo Rospigliosi (3,4,5) – was and is, more likely, conflict of interest.
The sprawling ‘union’ that is supposed to represent Italian farmers and ranchers is instead the tool to speculate on them, for the benefit of a business committee that goes by the name of the ‘Coldiretti magic circle. Otherwise referred to by its own members, more compassionately, as the ‘Coldiretti control room.’
1.4) The constitution
The deed of incorporation of AgriCorporateFinance dates back to 18.5.20 (the same date, combination, on which CAI Real Estate Srl was incorporated. See notes 6,7). Majority shareholder is Consorzi Agrari d’Italia (CAI) SpA, with 76.2 percent of shares (€6.1 of 8.3 million). The minority shareholders of AgriCorporateFinance, on the other hand, were the 47 Impresa Verde Srl Coldiretti companies from all parts of Italy. The headquarters of AgriCorporateFinance, ça va sans dir, is in Palazzo Rospigliosi.
President of the Board of Directors was Gianluca Lelli, once the Economic Secretary of Coldiretti (i.e., ‘dolphin’ of the head of the bosses Vincenzo Gesmundo), before being replaced by Alessandro Apolito, former MiPAAF, recruited according to the classic pattern of ‘revolving doors’ that has always instructed appointments in the trade association (8,9,10).
2) AGRICORPORATEFINANCE, FEDERCONSORZI 2 AND COLDIRETTI
Agricultural Consortia of Italy (CAI) S.p.A. is thus the reference shareholder of AgriCorporateFinance S.r.l., which in turn is the reference shareholder of CAI Real Estate S.r.l. (the real estate company of the Agricultural Consortia, which is also held by the holding company Of Carlo De Benedetti and his acolytes. See notes 6,7).
And this is the heart of the ‘Federconsorzi 2’ project, where lucrative statements are prepared for the benefit of all participants. Including the family farms of Coldiretti ras Vincenzo Gesmundo and its president Ettore Prandini, as noted. (10) In a great game of Chinese boxes.
2.1) Chinese boxes
CAI S.p.A. needed a ‘Chinese box’ – such as the real estate company CAI Real Estate S.r.l. – where it could segregate the large debts of the Agricultural Consortia that Federconsorzi 2 aspired to acquire. CAI S.p.A.’s direct shareholding in CAI Real Estate S.r.l., on the other hand, would have entailed the consolidation of these debts (placed in CAI Real Estate S.r.l.) in the hands of CAI S.p.A. This is therefore why AgriCorporateFinance was ‘sandwiched’ between CAI S.p.A. and CAI RE S.r.l.
Le 47 Impresa Verde S.r.l. of Coldiretti instead entered AgriCorporateFinance by contributing their stakes in Agri Centro Nord and Agri Centro Sud S.C.p.A. In December 2018, the 47 Impresa Verde had indeed covered a loss of €2 million taken over by the Bank of Italy in CreditAgrItalia S.C.p.A., which had then been split in November 2019 into two ‘smaller’ Confidi, Agri Centro Nord and Agri Centro Sud S.C.p.A. (12)
2.2) The bonfire of finance to the detriment of agricultural consortiums.
Quotas in cash subscribed by AgriCorporateFinance in CAI Real Estate S.r.l. with a nominal value of € 4.5 million were then converted into € 8 million in capital shares of CAI Real Estate S.r.l., in a ‘miraculous’ operation that burned € 21 million in contributions from the four Consorzi Agrari Tirreno, Emilia, Adriatico, Centro Sud. (11) In addition to suspected tax evasion and/or fraud of about € 12 million. (7)
In fact, the shareholders’ meeting of CAI Real Estate S.r.l. agreed to allocate all rights (patrimonial and administrative) in different proportions to individual contributions. And AgriCorporateFinance Srl got almost twice as much as it subscribed for in cash, with an equally large capital loss for the Consorzi Agrari – Tirreno, Emilia, Adriatico, Centro Sud, and SCCA p.a. (Società Consortile dei Consorzi Agrari per azioni) – which in a clause in meeting minutes lost 20 percent of their holdings.
3) AGRICORPOFIASCO, THE LIQUIDATION
Coldiretti’s magic circle-in less than two years since the launch of AgriCorporateFinance as the ‘latest development in credit, financial and insurance brokerage‘ (2)-then decided to liquidate and monetize the values extracted from the assets of the four Agricultural Consortia. With two juggling acts to follow.
3.1) Exit of the 47 Impresa Verde Srl of Coldiretti
Early 2022 Coldiretti’s 47 Impresa Verde S.r.l. exited from the capital of AgriCorporateFinance S.r.l., having CAI S.p.A. liquidate the crazy € 2 million investment made in 2018 in CreditAgriItalia – AgriCentro Nord e Sud (another disaster by Vincenzo Gesmundo, with € 20 million in losses, in relation to which Prof. On.le Giulio Tremonti and Dr. Accountant Enrico Leccisi were called to put right). (13)
3.2) AgriCorpoFiasco, aka K.Z. S.r.l. in liquidation
The second, even more aggressive sleight of hand was performed in just these days. The dissolution and liquidation of AgriCorporateFinance S.r.l., meanwhile renamed ‘K.Z. S.r.l. in liquidation’. K.Z. as Kamikaze? And why change the corporate name, perhaps to make the traces of the scandalous operation to the detriment of the Consorzi Agrari and CreditAgriItalia – AgriCentro Nord e Sud? The parabola of AgriCorporateFinance-K.Z. has certainly been very rapid, formed in June 2020, it is dissolved in April 2022.
The liquidation of AgriCorporateFinance – K.Z., allows CAI Spa to return the investment that allowed it to participate in the real estate treasure (artfully devalued) of the Consorzi Agrari Tirreno, Emilia, Adriatico, Centro Sud. Along with the other financial partners of Carlo De Benedetti’s congregation, in CAI Real Estate S.r.l. Italian farmers and ranchers may have a legitimate expectation of fair and transparent management, at least, of the liquidation of AgriCorporateFinance Srl. But that is also out of the question.
3.3) The trusted liquidator (of the Coldiretti magic circle).
The liquidator chosen for the ‘terminal phase’ of AgriCorporateFinance, of course, is not an independent third-party professional. Indeed, the Coldiretti magic circle has chosen its own acolyte, repeatedly mentioned in the ‘Vanghe Pulite’ investigation. Fabio Marella-the right-hand man of Raffaele Grandolini, the King Midas of Coldiretti (14)-follows in his footsteps:
– mayor of Filiera Agricola Italiana SpA, the big bandwagon where Raffaele Grandolini is chief executive officer and Ettore Prandini chairman, (15)
– mayor of the disastrous Campagna Amica Producers Consortium, (16) where Raffaele Grandolini is president,
– mayor of Bluarancio SpA, where Grandolini is CEO. Coldiretti’s IT company that serves the above-mentioned consortium, (16)
– mayor of the Coldiretti Service System Consortium, (16) where Grandolini is CEO,
– mayor of Simec SpA, another financial company in the Coldiretti galaxy, with Raffele Grandolini as president,
– auditor of the Mutual Fund for the Promotion and Development of Cooperation, alongside Raffaele Grandolini chairman of the Board of Auditors,
– auditor of Agri Centro Nord and Agri Centro Sud, formerly CreditAgri S.c.p.a, the disaster of Confidi censured by the Bank of Italy, following Antonio Cepparulo chairman of the board of auditors (12,13),
– icing on the cake, shareholder in AgriRevi SpA now in liquidation, the epitome of conflicts of interest. (17)
4) Interim Conclusions
AgriCorpoFiasco or Kamikaze, K.Z. in liquidation, has a dowry of € 8 mln in values of which € 3.5 mln once belonged to the Consorzi Agrari. And a debt of € 1 million owed to IBF Servizi SpA-the IT company of Bonifiche Ferraresi ( a minority shareholder with extraordinary powers of CAI SpA, aka Federconsorzi 2)-for services that ordinary mortals can hardly imagine, in the fatuous fires of AgriCorporateFinance.
Questions remain as to how a single ‘system’ liquidator can balance the interests of Coldiretti’s magic circle with those of the farmers and ranchers members of the Agricultural Consortia. The relevant authorities should investigate plausible conflicts of interest. Perhaps even on financial statements, property appraisals written down in the blink of an eye, the correspondence of intervening invoices with other companies in the Federconsorzi 2 galaxy. #Clean Spades!
‘He who keeps silent and bends his head dies every timehe does’ (Giovanni Falcone)
Dario Dongo
Notes
(1) Dario Dongo. Federconsorzi 2 aka CAI SpA, some clarity. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 3/15/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/federconsorzi-2-alias-cai-spa-un-po-di-chiarezza
(2) Credit, AgriCorporateFinance is born for businesses. The Coldiretti Point. 13.2.20, https://www.ilpuntocoldiretti.it/attualita/credito/credito-nasce-agricorporatefinance-per-le-imprese/
(3) Dario Dongo. Germina Campus, Coldiretti’s holding company speculating on farmers. #CleanSpades. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 6/13/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/germina-campus-la-holding-di-coldiretti-che-specula-sugli-agricoltori-vanghepulite
(4) Dario Dongo. Malfeasance against farmers and tax evasion, Campagna Amica continues. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 10.9.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/illeciti-a-danno-degli-agricoltori-ed-evasioni-fiscali-campagna-amica-prosegue
(5) Dario Dongo. Subsidized insurance in agriculture, the big business of Coldiretti’s magic circle. #CleanSpades. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 1.3.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/assicurazioni-agevolate-in-agricoltura-i-grandi-affari-del-cerchio-magico-di-coldiretti-vanghepulite
(6) Dario Dongo. Federconsorzi 2 and CAI Real Estate, the real estate treasures of Consorzi Agrari. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade).
3/27/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/federconsorzi-2-e-cai-real-estate-i-tesori-immobiliari-dei-consorzi-agrari
(7) Dario Dongo. Federconsorzi 2, CAI Real Estate Srl. Million-dollar tax evasion or fraud? #CleanSpades. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 7.7.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/federconsorzi-2-cai-real-estate-srl-evasione-o-frode-fiscale-milionaria-vanghepulite
(8) Dario Dongo. Public administration, loyalty to the state or to Coldiretti? #CleanSpades. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 6/27/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/pubblica-amministrazione-fedeltà-allo-stato-o-a-coldiretti-vanghepulite
(9) However, ex-delfino Gianluca Lelli was reserved a ‘golden exile’ in his Emilia Romagna region by appointment (through his company BT S.r.l.s., for tax convenience) as CEO of CAI S.p.A. With €250,000/year in fixed compensation, plus extraordinary compensation equal to 1.5 percent on the value of capital transactions (so also 1.5 percent of the value of each new Agricultural Consortium joining the CAI network. See articles cited in footnotes 1 and 10)
(10) Dario Dongo. CAI SpA, Federconsorzi 2. Federico Vecchioni’s Big Binge and Coldiretti’s Magic Circle.. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 16.2.21,
https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/cai-spa-federconsorzi-2-la-grande-abbuffata-di-federico-vecchioni-e-il-cerchio-magico-di-coldiretti
(11) Dario Dongo. Federconsorzi 2, 21 million burned at agricultural consortia in finance bonfire. #CleanSpades. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 3/30/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/federconsorzi-2-21-milioni-di-euro-bruciati-ai-consorzi-agrari-nel-falò-della-finanza-vanghepulite
(12) Dario Dongo. Vincenzo Gesmundo under investigation for attempted extortion. Coldiretti’s Confidi disaster. #CleanSpades. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 12/22/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/vincenzo-gesmundo-sotto-indagine-per-tentata-estorsione-il-disastro-confidi-di-coldiretti-vanghepulite
(13) The affair – set forth in the article referred to in higher footnote 12, as well as the subject of extortion investigations against Vincenzo Gesmundo – was referred to in a special parliamentary question 22.12.21 signed by Senator Saverio De Bonis. V. https://www.senato.it/japp/bgt/showdoc/showText?tipodoc=Sindisp&leg=18&id=1330230
(14) Dario Dongo. Federconsorzi 2, CAI SpA, AgriRevi, Coldiretti. The jerk dinner. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 31.1.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/federconsorzi-2-cai-spa-agrirevi-coldiretti-la-cena-dei-cretini
(15) Dario Dongo. Consorzi Agrari d’Italia, Bonifiche Ferraresi and Filiera Agricola Italiana SpA, the vase is full. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 23.1.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/consorzi-agrari-d-italia-bonifiche-ferraresi-e-filiera-agricola-italiana-spa-il-vaso-è-colmo
(16) Dario Dongo. Campaign Friendly-whose? #CleanSpades. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 6/19/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/campagna-amica-di-chi-vanghepulite
(17) Dario Dongo. Federconsorzi 2, AgriRevi, AIPO (Unaprol). Golden business for Coldiretti’s magic circle. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 3.6.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/federconsorzi-2-agrirevi-aipo-unaprol-affari-d-oro-per-il-cerchio-magico-di-coldiretti
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
