From Rome to Odessa, in the sign of trust: the story of SigiltecH and its link with Ukraine

Talking about seals with Alfredo Fiore, at the helm of SigiltecH for over forty years, means taking a journey that intertwines ancient history, high technology and an entrepreneurial vision that goes against the grain. To understand how a leading Italian company in the anti-fraud products sector – a trusted partner of law enforcement agencies, ministries, the Bank of Italy and even the Vatican – has come to have a close bond with Ukraine, we must start from a guiding principle: “No one knows everything. As with technology or knowledge, we must always connect with the world’s excellence”.

Fiore likes to compare seals to medicines in a pharmacy: “In a pharmacy you don’t just find the products of a single pharmaceutical company. You have to evaluate the products, compare them and even know their “side effects”. Because a seal is not a simple piece of plastic or metal: “It must guarantee absolute safety, deterrence and a very transparent image”, he says.

The birth of the bond with Ukraine

And the story with Ukraine was born precisely from this search for quality and the capacity for innovation. Not from a logic of economic delocalisation or a mere outlet market, but from the interest in the extraordinary technical and research expertise of a local partner.

As Claudia Tailli, “historical memory” of the company since 2007, recalls: “The first contacts with the Ukrainian manufacturer date back to 2010. We at SigiltecH always study the products in depth before proposing them, evaluating their real resolution qualities. We never dare to propose solutions to bodies such as the Carabinieri or the Financial Police if we are not one hundred percent certain of the result. We took the time to get to know each other, test the products and understand if they were compatible with the high standards required by the Italian market”.

After four years of analysis and development, in 2014 it was decided to have the first in-person meeting in the Odessa factory. A trip that remained imprinted in the company’s memory due to the extraordinary circumstances in which it took place: it coincided with the first clashes in Donbass. “Even the Ministry of Foreign Affairs advised us against leaving,” says Tailli. “But like good daredevils we went anyway: I was even in the fifth month of pregnancy. That’s where our collaborative and exclusive relationship officially began.”

Since then, the axis between Rome and Odessa has become increasingly consolidated. SigiltecH helped develop new models, purchased state-of-the-art machinery for the Ukrainian factory and perfected unique products. Among these, a very high security fluorescent seal stands out: a significant detail, designed to express visual deterrence even at night, for example on means of transport stopped in a stand, and to avoid any attempt at tampering or accidental breakages, a perfect alibi for the emulator of Arsenio Lupin, who can thus pass off intentional tampering as accidental damage.

The outbreak of war

With the explosion of the large-scale conflict in 2022, while many international entities decided to disengage, SigiltecH chose not to abandon its Ukrainian partner. Indeed, the collaboration has become even closer, transforming into a real bet of trust and concrete support.

“Operationally and from an economic point of view it has become a complex path,” they explain from SigiltecH. “Transport – says Fiore who right in the middle of the conflict, on 02/24/2022 he went to Odessa after a tiring and dangerous journey – is no longer what it was before, delivery times are uncertain and the banking bureaucracy requires continuous declarations and guarantees. Furthermore, to directly support the company and its workers during the war, we have upset the usual commercial dynamics: if before we paid in 60 days, today we pay everything in advance. We have even purchased power generators to allow the factory to continue producing during blackouts.”
A bond that goes beyond simple turnover numbers or profit margins – even more so when faced with competitors who often prefer to turn to low-cost Asian markets – and which has been able to withstand the toughest tests. It is no coincidence that three years ago, on the occasion of the fortieth anniversary of SigiltecH celebrated in the Capitol, the Ukrainian partner managed to reach Rome to celebrate a historic milestone together.

The look to the future

Today, looking to the future and reconstruction, from Alfedo Fiore and Claudia Tailli, responsible for development and quality, Veronica Fiore responsible for relations with the various Italian and non-Italian public bodies, comes a concrete idea to help the Ukrainian productive fabric: “Ukrainian products imported today do not pay duties, but an extra step could be taken. It would be important that in public tenders – where we often see enormous numbers of seals purchased, but coming from Asia and/or other countries – a reward score was recognized for manufactured goods and technologies coming from Ukraine. Giving a significant score incentive in offers for those who use Ukrainian technologies would be real, clean and concrete help to support the economy of that country and enhance their enormous production capacity”.

A path that combines responsibility, respect and vision of work. After all, smiles Fiore recalling a curious historical anecdote linked to the company’s Roman headquarters in via della Giustiniana, “the first edict on seals dates back to 512 AD and was made by the emperor Justinian. He created the “signum” to allow even those who could not read or write Latin to sign valid agreements. The need to guarantee trust and transparent security was there then and is there today: and when you find partners capable of guaranteeing you this quality, you don’t abandon”