
Hodli secures Italy's first MiCA portfolio licence
- Hodli has become Italy's first company authorised to provide discretionary crypto portfolio management under the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets framework.
- The approval allows the fintech to manage crypto portfolios for clients rather than offering only custody or trading-related services.
- The company said the licence supports partnerships with banks seeking regulated cryptocurrency investment solutions.
Hodli received authorisation from the Bank of Italy to operate as a Crypto-Asset Service Provider under the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets framework, becoming Italy's first licensed discretionary crypto portfolio manager.
The approval expands beyond earlier Italian MiCA licences focused on custody, transfers and trading services by allowing Hodli to make investment decisions, rebalance portfolios and manage crypto assets on behalf of clients within agreed mandates.
Chief Executive Officer Gianluca Sommariva said Hodli combines proprietary portfolio management algorithms with artificial intelligence to analyse digital asset markets, allocate capital and monitor client portfolios.
The company said the licence creates opportunities to work with banks that want to offer regulated cryptocurrency investment services without developing in-house portfolio management capabilities, while remaining subject to MiCA's governance, risk management and operational requirements.
Hodli said the approval marks an expansion of regulated crypto investment services in Italy, although larger banks and asset managers are also expected to increase their digital asset offerings as MiCA adoption continues across Europe.
The European Union introduced MiCA to replace fragmented national crypto regulations with a common licensing framework covering governance, operational resilience, consumer protection and internal controls.
The approval reflects a broader shift in Europe's digital asset market from exchange and custody services towards regulated portfolio management and institutional investment solutions.