Why at Costigliole d'Asti, Slow Finance
Why "Slow Finance" at Costigliole
Mayor of Costigliole d'Asti
Cav. Enrico A. Cavallero, symbolizes a new trajectory of local development that integrates tradition, innovation, and economic regeneration shaping what is now known as the "Costigliole Model." Following the best tradition of local Heritage, we believe Costigliole is the natural "home" for Slow Finance.
Costigliole because..
01
First Slow Food Presidio was from Costigliole!
The madness of global finance has led to the intensive cultivation of tulip bulbs in the "California" area of Motta di Costigliole, almost completely replacing the local native crop of traditional peppers. Rebelling against this outrage and recalling childhood memories of delicious, fleshier peppers, whose skin is thinner and easier to peel, Carlin Petrini recognized the need to establish "Slow Food Presidia" to protect this invaluable triad of terroir, the wisdom of the local farmer, and a fruit, vegetable, and wine product that, the fruit of centuries-old stratifications, expresses its best in that specific geographical microclimate. Thus, the first "Costigliole Square Pepper, Slow Food Presidium" was awarded. This was followed by the birth of the "Slow Food Foundation for Bio Diversity ONLUS" and shortly thereafter, the attribution of a second Presidium to Costigliole, the very famous (for connoisseurs) "Carciofo del Sorì"
Costigliole because..
02
Carciofo in fiore, dall'orto Fantolino:
The first "Futures" (derivative financial contract) in the world human history... was signed in Costiglione!
There was a time when the Turin Stock Exchange was the Italian benchmark for raw materials and food products, the Chicago Stock Exchange is the global benchmark today. (Today, the European experimental project of Social Impact Investing). It is estimated that today, global financial GDP exceeds real GDP by a factor of nine, and derivative financial instruments, especially leveraged ones, are the legal infrastructure on which today's speculation is based. But the origins of "futures" were far from sinister. In Costigliole, in fact, the Asinari family, with 20 fiefdoms in Europe, each measuring 300 hectares, centered precisely in "Cù-Stìol" (Costigliole d'Asti), owned one of the largest, most widespread, and most advanced investment banks. A competitor to the Medici family's Monte Paschi di Siena, the family initiated the "pasture fund," the common fund used to pay for livestock, fleece, and peasant activities, asserting its dominance by paying a year in advance.
Costigliole because..
03
But t was the Bank of the Asinari family who invented the first "Futures" by persuading local producers to uproot their vineyards and replace them with Moscato and Chardonnay.
The goal was good: I'll pay you now, allowing you to wait 4-5 years for the vines to grow back to productive life, and I commit myself today, with an official contract, to pay you more, at a pre-established price, for future harvests. In short, the coincidence is starting to become evident... what better place for Slow Finance than the homeland, the genesis, the place from which the current global financial system started?
Costigliole because..
04
The most beautiful woman in Europe, from Costigliole, part of the permanent exposition at MoMa NYC.
Virginia Oldoini, known as "The Countess," was considered the most beautiful woman in Europe. She was a cousin of Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, and was married to the extremely wealthy Asinari family, reuniting after centuries the two families who had historically competed for Costigliole and who already shared the castle: the Verasis family and the Asinari family, thus unifying the historic family home, previously divided between the two lineages. It is said that in the marriage agreement, Virginia would dress every day in a different dress, tailor-made, of course, and made from the finest fabrics. Costigliole takes its name from "costa dei linden," meaning "tigli," a Langa, a strip of land bordered by linden trees that were essential for the silkworm production, once the secret was discovered by Marco Polo and in subsequent centuries, previously held exclusively in the regions of Mongolia and northern China. Costigliole thus became one of the most vibrant centers for silk production and the manufacturing of tailored suits. And since she had to wear a different one every day, they were reused, given away, sold, donated, and preserved. Slow Finance also meant financial emancipation, independence, fairness, and equal opportunity, and Virginia was among the first and most independent women of her time. So emancipated was she that she went on a secret mission on behalf of the Italian Prime Minister, Camillo Benso Cavour, to the Court of the Emperor of France. This mission allowed Italian diplomacy to attempt the Campaign of the Thousand, led by Garibaldi, which led to the unification of the Italian peninsula. It was Gabriele Asinari who brought Freemasonry to Italy with the Lodge of Saint Jean de la Mystérieuse. Virginia, in her splendor, succeeded in establishing herself, far beyond the standards that society of the time had expected of her. Not driven by speculative desire, she contributed to achieving one of the most significant undertakings, reuniting the peninsula, since the fall of the Roman Empire.