Italian fintech Conio has obtained a MiCAR licence in Italy, authorising it to offer custody, transfer, and placement of digital assets under EU regulatory standards.
Italy-based Conio, a fintech backed by Poste Italiane and Banca Generali, has obtained authorisation in Italy under the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCAR) to operate as a crypto-asset service provider (CASP). The licence was granted following a review involving Italy's markets regulator Consob and the Bank of Italy, and covers custody, transfer, and placement of digital assets.
The authorisation comes ahead of the 30 June 2026 end of the MiCAR transition period, after which unlicensed firms will be barred from offering crypto-asset services in Italy and across the EU.
Target markets and strategic direction
Conio has identified three primary target segments for its licensed operations: retail investors, banks, and fintechs seeking white-label crypto solutions, and companies or institutions requiring tokenisation and digital asset management services. The white-label channel is particularly relevant given Conio's existing relationships with Poste Italiane and Banca Generali, both of which represent potential distribution partners for regulated digital asset services within their own customer bases.
CEO Christian Miccoli stated that the licence supports Conio's ambition to become a partner for integrating digital assets into regulated investment portfolios, as the company expands its involvement in blockchain and tokenisation projects.
Regulatory context
MiCAR entered full application in December 2024, establishing a harmonised framework for crypto-asset service providers across the EU. The 30 June 2026 transition deadline represents a hard cut-off for firms that have been operating under national transitional arrangements, and Italy's is among the stricter enforcement timelines in the EU. For Conio, obtaining authorisation ahead of the deadline positions it to continue and expand operations without interruption, while competitors that have not secured licences in time will be required to cease offering crypto services.
No details on the number of existing clients or the projected scale of white-label deployments have been disclosed.
