SAS, a company which controls GNV, will transfer its 49% stake in Moby – without consideration – to Onorato Armatori (which controls Moby) and it will also waive the pledge over the remaining 51%. To repay the loan received from SAS, Moby will entrust a third party with organising a tender for the sale of a package of assets. Compensation for consumers who purchased tickets before 16 July.

The Italian Competition Authority has accepted and made binding the commitments offered by SAS - Shipping Agencies Services SARL (a company owned by MSC Holding), Moby S.p.A. and Grandi Navi Veloci S.p.A.

The investigation was opened on 5 November 2024 into a suspected cartel in breach of Article 101 TFEU, as a result of the structural link between Moby and GNV. This link arose after SAS acquired a 49% shareholding in Moby and was strengthened by the substantial loan provided by SAS to Moby in December 2023. According to the Authority, these transactions could have led to a deterioration in competitive dynamics on the routes where Moby and GNV (controlled by SAS) operate as competitors.

The commitments offered by SAS and Moby, and made binding by the Authority, remove the structural and financial links which had prompted the opening of the investigation.

In particular:

- SAS will transfer to Onorato Armatori (a company which controls Moby through a 51% shareholding) its 49% stake in Moby without consideration and also waive the pledge over the remaining 51%, which it had obtained as security for its loan to Moby in 2023.

- Moby will entrust an independent third party with organising a competitive and transparent procedure, open to all interested operators, for the sale of a package of assets identified on the basis of an independent valuation. The proceeds from the sale will be used to repay the loan received from SAS. To ensure Moby’s continued operations, certain assets will be subject to charter-back arrangements.

- If the proceeds from the sale of these assets are not sufficient to extinguish SAS’ loan, any remaining credit will be transferred to independent third parties on terms that safeguard Moby’s economic and financial sustainability.

Moby and GNV have also undertaken to provide compensation to consumers who, before the date of publication of the commitments (16 July 2025), purchased a trip on the Genova-Olbia, Genova-Porto Torres, Civitavecchia-Olbia routes scheduled between June and September 2025, or a trip on the Napoli-Palermo route scheduled for weekends between 1 November 2024 and 31 March 2025. For Moby, this compensation amounts to 5% of the ticket price (net of taxes, fees and ETS) if the consumer opts for a refund, or 10% if a voucher is chosen instead. For GNV, the compensation amounts to 15 euro for cabin travel and 7% of the ticket price for other trips.

Rome, 24 October 2025

Text of the decision