In this article, the author discusses the request by the Italian Supreme Court for a preliminary ruling from the ECJ regarding the compatibility of the 2016 Italian legislation reforming the governance and regulation of cooperative banks with the EU Capital Duty Directive (2008/7). In particular, that legislation imposes a levy on cooperative banks that avoid a requirement to join a cooperative banking group by contributing their business to a joint-stock company that carries out the banking activity. The author argues that the legislation violates the prohibition against Member States levying indirect taxes on capital contributions contained in article 5 of the Capital Duty Directive (2008/7).