Dexia Wins in London Against Province of Crotone

Cleary Gottlieb represented Dexia S.A. (Dexia) in obtaining a default judgment dated December 5, 2025, in which the High Court of Justice of London upheld Dexia’s claims in full and ordered the Province of Crotone to pay significant sums owed under three interest rate swap derivative contracts entered into in 2007, in addition to legal costs.

The decision follows an earlier ruling in which the London court, in 2015, had established the validity of these contracts and the related obligations, which the Province of Crotone had initially challenged. The 2015 decision was subsequently recognized by the Catanzaro Court of Appeal in 2017 and enforced following complex enforcement proceedings, which enabled Dexia to recover the amounts found to be due up to 2015.

The new ruling will allow Dexia to recover the amounts accrued since the 2015 decision, representing another victory for financial institutions in the long-running disputes with Italian regions and local authorities over the validity of derivative contracts governed by English law and subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

The Cleary team was led by partner James Norris-Jones and counsel Roberto Argeri, and included associates Frances Carpenter, Joe Gaffney, and Martina Ercolanese.