Banca Sella, one of the private banks based in Italy, received an official crypto services license from the Bank of Italy within the framework of MiCA, which regulates the European Union’s crypto asset markets, and became the first bank in the country to receive this permission.
New Era in Crypto Services
Banca Sella, which has assets under management of 50 billion euros and serves more than 3.1 million customers, fulfilled all obligations in the process after the 40-day official notification period. The bank announced that crypto services for customers will be gradually launched at the end of the year after the license is obtained.
“Being approved as a cryptoasset service provider will allow Banca Sella to launch digital asset custody, transfer and acquisition services for selected customer groups in 2026,” the bank’s official statement said. The statement was included.
Technological Infrastructure and Collaborations
The bank’s first crypto plans were prepared for retail customers through its digital banking subsidiary Hype. Now, a more comprehensive digital asset infrastructure created for corporate customers comes to the fore. This new model builds on a compliance partnership with blockchain analytics company Chainalysis and an in-house digital asset pilot launched with Fireblocks.
Mini dictionary: Chainalysis is a blockchain analysis company that can track illegal transactions by analyzing cryptocurrency movements and provide data to regulatory authorities.
With its MiCA license, Banca Sella joins approximately 20 banks offering crypto asset services in Europe. This group also includes large institutions such as Commerzbank and LBBW from Germany, Société Générale FORGE from France and BBVA from Spain.
| Bank / Organization | Country | MiCA License | Crypto Service Start Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Banca Sella | Italy | 2024 | 2024 (pilot), 2026 (full coverage) |
| commerzbank | Germany | 2023 | 2024 |
| Société Générale FORGE | France | 2023 | 2023 |
| BBVA | Spain | 2022 | 2023 |
Stablecoin and Tokenization Initiatives
Banca Sella is among the founding members of the Qivalis consortium of 37 European banks, which is preparing to launch a euro-based stablecoin this year. In addition, the bank is actively involved in projects called Pontes and Appia, which aim to tokenize EU-wide deposits and payments as digital assets.
With all these efforts, Banca Sella states that it aims to both support the financial independence of Europe and bring together traditional banking with digital infrastructures.
The Future of Financial Infrastructure in Europe
Banca Sella Digital Banking General Manager Andrea Tessera said that payments; He said that the evolution of instantaneous, interoperable and programmable models has accelerated with the tokenization of money and assets, and that this transformation has reshaped financial infrastructures both in Europe and the world.
