Corporate Governance, Stakeholder Involvement, and Government Interventions as Corporate Prevention Strategies Against Organized Crime

Abstract

The chapter examines organized crime prevention strategies through the analysis of three complementary approaches: corporate governance, stakeholder involvement, and government interventions. The first approach analyzes the Italian Legality Rating (LR) system, a corporate governance tool introduced in 2012 to combat corruption and illegal practices. The LR evaluates firms' ethical behavior through specific criteria, offering economic advantages (credit access, public funds) and social benefits (reputation) to virtuous companies. The study highlights how this system can reduce information asymmetry and signal firms' legal integrity. The second approach examines the role of anti-mafia organizations as external stakeholders. Particular attention is devoted to the "pizzo" phenomenon and anti-racket associations, focusing on the Addiopizzo movement in Sicily. The analysis demonstrates how adherence to these networks can strengthen firms' resilience against criminal threats, creating collective protection mechanisms. The third approach analyzes government interventions, concentrating on asset confiscation and social reuse mechanisms. The study highlights challenges and opportunities in managing confiscated properties and businesses, emphasizing the importance of an integrated approach that combines preventive, repressive, and social recovery measures to effectively counter criminal infiltration in the legal economy. The research underscores the significance of coordinated efforts between internal governance tools, civil society movements, and institutional interventions in creating a comprehensive anti-mafia strategy.