Italian Central Banker Attacks PM Meloni’s On Her Commitment To Slow Digitalisation, Italian Leader Doesn’t Wave
Testifying in parliament on the government’s budget plans, Mr. Fabrizio Balassone, head of the economic research department of the Bank of Italy, said caps on cash were a useful tool for combating tax evasion, and greater cash use would effectively promote the black market.
Higher cash thresholds favour the black economy, Mr. Balassone told parliament.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, acknowledged that her plan to exempt merchants from accepting digital payments below €60 could face resistance from Brussels, which had asked Italy to encourage digital payments as part of its pandemic recovery plan.
However, the Italian PM assured Italian merchants on Monday that she would not withdraw her commitment.
It is false to state that the ability to use cash encourages tax evasion, Ms. Meloni said in a her online live appearance on Monday. A person who wants to evade evades anyway, she destroyed the centralbanker’s claims.
