Antonio Fazio, who quit as Bank of Italy governor last month, was tricked by the man at the heart of Italy's recent banking scandals, the former central banker's lawyer said on Friday.
Franco Coppi told Ansa that Fazio had never tried to procure illicit advantages for Gianpiero Fiorani, former head of Banca Popolare Italiana, in his bid to buy control of Banca Antonveneta
If he had done so, it had been unwittingly, and because Fiorani had kept certain things from him, the lawyer maintained.
"The decision to defend the Italian-ness of the banking system might be open to criticism but it is not a crime and it was taken in absolute good faith, without providing advantages for either one or the other.
"And if this led him to commit illicit acts, it was because he was deceived," Coppi said.
Fazio is under investigation for abuse of office and insider trading in connection with his decision last summer to approve a takeover bid for Antonveneta by Fiorani's BPI. A firm supporter of keeping his country's banks in Italian hands, Fazio has been accused of illicitly favouring the Italian bank over Dutch rival ABN Amro in the battle for Antonveneta.
BPI eventually lost its battle for Antoveneta to ABN Amro, but only after prosecutors began probing alleged malpractice at the Italian bank.
Fazio's own staff advised against giving the green light after inspections revealed irregularities in BPI's offer and its internal situation. Tapped phone conversations published last summer revealed the central banker also personally called Fiorani, at about midnight to tell him he had approved the bid.
Coppi said Fazio wanted investigations into his role in the Antonveneta controversy to move quickly so that his innocence could be established.
