Real estate transactions in Costa Smeralda, with transactions worth 1 billion euros from abroad, have ended up under the scrutiny of the Provincial Command of the Guardia di Finanza of Sassari as part of anti-money laundering controls.
The activity of the Guardia di Finanza is part of a broader monitoring operation aimed at preventing the use of the financial system for the purpose of money laundering and terrorist financing. Attention was focused in particular on financial intermediaries, professionals and other operators who, in various capacities, operated in the field of buying and selling and leasing luxury properties in Costa Smeralda , one of the areas of the country most attractive for international investments of significant value.
The inspections involved approximately 150 real estate transactions. The financial transactions of one billion euros come mainly from abroad and from countries with preferential tax regimes, where offshore companies are often set up to hide the true beneficial owners. Numerous administrative violations of anti-money laundering regulations were detected, relating to the use of cash for amounts exceeding the limit established by law, or to the obligations to identify customers and to report suspicious transactions. In particular, the greatest shortcomings were found in the failure to comply with the requirements regarding adequate customer verification.
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