This seems easy, someone in the Italian government, maybe involved in the G8 meeting, got wind of the back room deals that would be going on, and decided to get in on the finder's fee. Viva Italia.
I believe they are real, and I am equally interested in where they were going, where they came from, and why the government issued them.
The Bilderbergers just got together in Greece. It would be very easy to take the yacht over to Italy. Wonder what went down that we are not supposed to know about? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilderberg_Group