In the Italian secret services, careers almost always unfold away from the spotlight. Then, sometimes, they all resurface at once. This is the case of Giuseppe Del Deo, for over thirty years a man of economic-financial intelligence, up to the top ranks of Aisi, and today at the center of the investigation by the Rome prosecutor’s office into the so-called “Squadra Fiore” – a case which, it should be clarified, does not involve either Cerved or its owner Andrea Pignataro.
FROM THE SERVICES TO THE INVESTIGATION: THE DEL DEO CASE
Del Deo is under investigation for embezzlement and unauthorized access to computer systems, that is, the use without authorization of databases and confidential archives. According to some wiretaps reported by the press, there is an alleged “shortfall” between 7 and 8 million euros, not yet verified.
After the investigation emerged, Del Deo announced that he had suspended himself with immediate effect from the position of executive chairman of Cerved, explaining that he wanted to “preserve the company’s reputation” and reiterating his lack of involvement in the facts.
A CAREER IN THE GANGLIA OF ECONOMIC SECURITY
To understand how this transition came about, one must look back at his career. An army officer, Del Deo joined intelligence and remained there for over thirty years. His field is the most delicate: economic-financial analysis, that is, monitoring banks, large industrial groups, capital flows, and systemic vulnerabilities. At Aisi he grew as an analyst, then manager, up to the operational top ranks.
THE RISE AND RELATIONS WITH POLITICS
In 2023 he was appointed deputy director of the Agency. It is an important turning point: the number two of internal intelligence. At that stage, his profile was transversal, with relationships crossing multiple political areas. He was considered close to Giorgia Meloni and Guido Crosetto and was also well regarded by Giovambattista Fazzolari. But precisely this positioning also made him a controversial figure in other government circles.
THE GIAMBRUNO CASE AND TENSIONS AT PALAZZO CHIGI
The key turning point is, according to the press, the so-called Giambruno case. Andrea Giambruno, then partner of the prime minister, was subjected to unusual checks and attention near Meloni’s home: an episode never fully clarified but which undermined the trust relationship between Palazzo Chigi and some sectors of intelligence. From that moment, Del Deo allegedly lost operational centrality.
CAPUTI, THE DIS, AND EXIT FROM THE APPARATUS
The name of Gaetano Caputi, chief of staff of the Presidency of the Council, also comes into play. Some articles report internal checks and tensions related precisely to controls and sensitive information flows, which contributed to reshaping the balances at the top of the services. The result was a transfer of Del Deo to the Dis, the Department of Information for Security: formally a promotion, in fact a step back from operational roles.
In 2025 he took early retirement, shortly after turning fifty. An unusual choice for that level and age, marking his exit from the apparatus. And here the second phase opens.
THE MOVE TO THE PRIVATE SECTOR: WHY CERVED
As Repubblica writes, “Del Deo leaves with his secrets. Perhaps also for this reason he does not struggle to find a new job.” And again: “He is hired in what seems to everyone a conflict of interest.”
The new landing place is Cerved. It is Andrea Pignataro, founder of the Ion group, who wants him. “He is the one who wants him by his side at Cerved,” reads another article from Repubblica, “a company that evaluates the reliability of businesses, between credit scoring and commercial information.” The role seems dictated by considerations beyond the managerial profile: “With Del Deo, the direction becomes more ambitious: predictive analysis of geopolitical risks, cybersecurity. Yet always remaining in the shadows, as the company’s brand demands.”
WHAT IS CERVED AND HOW IT STANDS FINANCIALLY
Cerved Group Spa is a joint-stock company established in 2014, headquartered in San Donato Milanese, and is the operating holding of the group. The share capital is 50.5 million euros, and in the past, when it was listed, the capital was divided into over 190 million shares, a structure later changed with the exit from Piazza Affari and the reorganization under Ion. The company operates at the heart of the data economy: it collects, processes, and distributes economic-financial information on companies and markets, producing ratings, credit scoring systems, risk analyses, and databases used by banks, companies, and institutions.
The 2024 financial figures tell of a solid but financially complex reality: revenues of about 305 million euros (over 321 million including other income), operating profit positive at 58.7 million, but a net loss of 51.2 million mainly due to financial charges. Total assets exceed 3 billion, with equity of about 963 million.
The CEO is Luca Peyrano, while Del Deo – until his self-suspension – held the position of executive chairman.
ION, CEDACRI, AND THE EMPIRE OF FINANCIAL DATA
In recent years, Cerved has entered the orbit of the Ion group, the giant founded by Pignataro. Ion was born in 1999 in London and grew through an aggressive acquisition strategy in financial software and market infrastructures. Among the most significant operations in Italy is the acquisition, in 2021, of the Cedacri group, a company specialized in IT services for banks (IT outsourcing, core banking, data management), acquired for about 1.5 billion euros. Ion controls it and has made it one of the pillars of its presence in the Italian banking sector.
Cedacri is a fundamental piece because it manages platforms and critical systems for numerous credit institutions: this means access to and management of highly sensitive information flows. The integration with Cerved thus strengthens a supply chain that goes from data production to its processing and use in financial decision-making processes.
WHO IS PIGNATARO
The Ion group has built over time an asset perimeter valued overall in tens of billions of euros, making Pignataro one of the richest men in Italy. A mathematician by training and former derivatives trader, he founded Ion in London in 1999, developing it through growth by acquisitions in software and services for financial markets, with a strategy centered on integrating infrastructures, data, and platforms used by banks and operators. He has even surpassed Giovanni Ferrero in the Forbes ranking, with an estimated fortune of around 42 billion euros. But he remains an extremely reserved figure – almost invisible in the media – with a historic presence also in holdings such as Monte dei Paschi di Siena.
FROM PUBLIC INTELLIGENCE TO PRIVATE DATA INTELLIGENCE
It is in this context that Del Deo’s arrival is placed. A transition that is not only professional but systemic: from public intelligence to private data intelligence.
His value, in fact, is not only technical. He brings with him a deep knowledge of the dynamics between economy and security, system vulnerabilities, and the interconnections between finance and power. At a time when economic information is becoming increasingly strategic tools, his profile represents a hinge between two worlds.
THE LINK TO THE “SQUADRA FIORE” INVESTIGATION
And it is precisely this continuity that makes his story particularly significant in the framework of the investigation into “Squadra Fiore,” an alleged network of dossiering and unauthorized access to databases built, according to investigators, also thanks to skills and relationships developed within the apparatus. Among the suspects are former service members and private security operators.
A STORY THAT GOES BEYOND THE JUDICIAL CASE
Individual responsibilities will be ascertained in the appropriate venues. But the Del Deo case already tells something broader: the progressive shift of strategic competencies from the State to the market, and the increasingly central role of economic information as a lever of power.
