Mafia offspring of the call center company Assist Digital in Tirana. Who is behind Enrico Donati, and why is the beneficial owner being concealed?
The company Assist Digital (L52317008R), established ten years ago, ranks among the leading companies operating in the fields of call centers, consulting, and technology, employing approximately 1,800 workers. The company appears to operate in Tirana not only because of the low labor costs, but also to take advantage of a dysfunctional and easily corruptible state.
The Parliament of Albania approved a law on the register of beneficial owners in 2020. Treating Albanian laws as mere formalities, the call center company has chosen to defy this law by failing to declare its beneficial owner. The law requires the National Business Center (QKB) to compel the company to declare its beneficial owner, but the investigation into the criminal organization Bankers demonstrated how easily the QKB can be influenced to violate the law.
Instead of declaring the beneficial owner, Assist shpk declared Enrico Donati, a 66-year-old Italian citizen, who serves as the company’s highest-ranking representative. This irregular declaration was accepted by the QKB, which has been implicated in numerous SPAK case files.
Assist shpk, managed by Evis Karandrea, Riccardo Recco, and Gianluca Fulciniti, is owned by the Italian company Assist Digital S.p.A., founded in 2002 and headquartered in Milan, Via Angelo Inganni 93.
So why does Assist refuse to declare its beneficial owner as required by law? Why does it defy Albanian legislation? What role does Enrico Donati actually play? Could it be that revealing the beneficial owner would expose other matters?
In addition to concealing its ultimate beneficial owner, Assist shpk reportedly conducts part of its operations in locations that are prohibited and hazardous to the lives of its employees. Albania has laws, a State Labour Inspectorate, strategies, and workplace safety regulations, but they appear to exist only on paper.
It appears that Enrico Donati has adapted quickly, allegedly “greasing the wheels” of the public institutions that should have shut down these workplaces.
Beyond exposing employees to physical risks and hearing-related health problems, the rights of the Italian company’s employees in Albania are reportedly violated on a systematic basis through scandalous employment contracts. There are also several indications raising suspicions that the company may have been involved in other unlawful activities, including profit shifting and tax avoidance.
