Antonio Fazio (born 1936 in Alvito, province of Frosinone) is the Governor of the Bank of Italy, a lifetime appointment (although legislation establishing a fixed-term appointment is now expected), and considered one of the most powerful men in Italy. He graduated with a degree in economics from Rome University and joined the Bank of Italy in 1960. Jump to: navigation, search 1936 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Alvito is a small town in Central Italy in the province of Frosinone, south of Rome. ... Frosinone may refer to: Provincia di Frosinone is a province in the Latium region of central Italy. ... Please see: Banca dItalia is the Italian Central Bank. ...

He is reported to be very religious, and close to the Vatican. He has five children. The youngest of his daughters has been consacrated to the order of Legionaries of Christ, a lay religious organization (some newspapers reported incorrectly she was becoming a nun). Jump to: navigation, search Fishers of men; Oil on panel by Adriaen van de Venne (1614) Religion (see etymology below) —sometimes used interchangeably with faith or belief system—is commonly defined as belief concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the moral codes, practices, values, institutions and rituals associated with... Jump to: navigation, search // Introduction The Legion of Christ is a Catholic religious order established in 1941 in Mexico by Fr. ... Jump to: navigation, search In general, a nun is a female ascetic who chooses to voluntarily leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent. ...

Career

In 1993, after his predecessor Carlo Azeglio Ciampi left office to become the Prime Minister of Italy, he became governor of the Bank of Italy. Some years after his appointment, it was said that he was interested in the leadership of the left-wing coalition to beat Berlusconi's right wing one. After Berlusconi won the 2001 general election, however, he came to be considered closer to the centre-right. 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Pres. ... This is a list of Prime Ministers of Italy. ... Portrait of Silvio Berlusconi Silvio Berlusconi (born September 29, 1936) is currently (as of 2005) the Prime Minister of Italy. ... A national general election was held in Italy on May 13, 2001 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic. ...

The Antonveneta Affair

Fazio is presently under heavy pressure to retire, because of his role in allegedly rigging the competition to take over an Italian bank, Banca Antonveneta in 2005. Published excerpts of tapped telephone calls strongly suggest that Fazio favoured an Italian bid, probably in order to sabotage a sounder, foreign bid from Dutch bank ABN AMRO. Jump to: navigation, search 2005(MMV) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... ABN AMRO is the largest bank in the Netherlands and has operations all over the world, its history going back to 1824. ...

Moreover, there were issues of conflict of interest: although the newspapers have largely stayed clear of this aspect, Fazio's daughter is widely thought in Italy to be in an intimate relationship with the chief executive of the Italian bank that Fazio supposedly favoured, Gianpiero Fiorani. Jump to: navigation, search A conflict of interest is a situation in which someone in a position of trust, such as a lawyer, a politician, or an executive or director of a corporation, has competing professional and/or personal interests. ... Chief Executive may refer to: Chief Executive of Hong Kong Chief Executive of Macau Chief Executive Officer This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Reaction of the Government

Silvio Berlusconi's government, itself in troubled times because of the utter defeat in the regional elections of 2005, has been accused of weakness for not kicking Fazio out of office. On September 21, 2005, economy minister Domenico Siniscalco resigned in protest against the lack of determination in the government^[1]. The Italian Regional elections of April 3 and 4, 2005 were a major victory (11-2) for the centre-left coalition LUnione, led by Romano Prodi. ... September 21 is the 264th day of the year (265th in leap years). ...

Reference

• ^  Governor Fazio's daughter becomes a lay nun, article from La Repubblica.
• ^  Siniscalco: "No more immobilism, I will go back working as a professor", article from La Repubblica.