Journal of
Italian
Banking
Association
year 100
Italian
Banking
Association
year 100
Economic activity and public morality
Roberto RuoziJune 2026 - n. 6
Keywords: Banche, principi etico-sociali
Jel codes: G21, G28, A13
The concept of accepted principles of public morality is dynamic and variable. Social values changes in time and space, reflecting the evolution of collective sensibility. It is therefore not susceptible to a rigid and predetermined definition, and can only be identified by resorting to common sense and common morality, which are not univocally determinable. Traditionally associated in legal practice above all with sexual morality, public morality has always been considered extraneous to economic and financial activities. A recent ruling by the Italian Court of Cassation, however, paves the way for a conception according to which morality could also concern economic transactions, affecting their validity or effectiveness: a perspective not without criticalities.
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