Hex Trust, one of the global leading custodians of digital assets, has officially expanded to Europe by opening its first European office in Milan, Italy. The establishment of the first office in the European Union (EU) is an essential milestone in Hex Trust’s expansion strategy in Europe, also in light of the forthcoming implementation of the Markets in Cryptoassets (MiCA) regulation that is expected to allow much greater adoption of digital assets across the continent.
At present, each country in the EU has put together its own framework regarding the regulation of digital assets; however, with the approval of MiCA, the EU is paving the way for a unified and harmonized set of rules across the region. This will be key to allow the launch of the Digital Euro by the BCE in the coming year. At that point, a safe custody solution for this type of assets would be paramount.
Alessio Quaglini, Co-founder and CEO of Hex Trust Ltd and Hex Trust Italia said: “Having established our presence in Milan strengthens Hex Trust’s mission of providing ‘round the clock’, fully regulated digital asset support to 200+ institutional clients globally, in an industry which operates 24 hours per day and 7 days per week.” At present, Hex Trust has offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai, Vietnam and now Italy after the close of its recent US$88M Series B funding round.
Hex Trust Italia has also successfully completed its registration with the Italian Virtual Asset Services Provider (VASP) registry, in place since last May under the supervision of the Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM) and introduced by decree of the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance on February 17, 2022. Creating the OAM registry for VASP is Italy’s first step in regulating the digital assets sector. Being listed on the OAM registry is now essential for any company operating in the cryptocurrency space looking to work with Italian clients, whether institutional or retail.
Paolo Gagliano, Hex Trust’s long-standing Senior Advisor has been appointed to the board of Hex Trust Italia to lead the expansion effort in Europe, leveraging decades of senior experience in Corporate & Investment Banking in Europe and Asia.
“We are glad that Italy and the EU are setting up a framework to allow the safe adoption of digital assets and believe that regulation is key to enabling the future growth of the blockchain industry. At Hex Trust Italia, we have started with the successful approval from OAM to be listed on their registry for digital assets players. We look forward to complying with the new stringent requirements expected following the implementation of the MiCA regulation due to begin in 2023. Hex Trust developed its global presence starting in Asia but has a strong Italian legacy and breadth of competence (including one of its founders and CEO, Alessio Quaglini) that we want to put at the disposal of our Italian prospective clients. We’re currently in talks with several banks, financial institutions and corporations in Italy which are increasingly adopting digital assets solutions and require Hex Trust to be on the OAM Registry. We’re delighted to be fully compliant and now aim to expand our client base in Europe starting from Italy,” Paolo commented.
Hex Trust is the leading fully licensed and insured provider of bank-grade custody and associated services for digital assets in Asia. Led by veteran banking technologists and award-winning financial services experts, Hex Trust has built Hex Safe, a proprietary bank-grade platform that delivers custody, DeFi, brokerage, and financing solutions for financial institutions, digital asset organizations, corporations and HNWI clients. Hex Trust has offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai, Italy, and Vietnam.
About Alessio Quaglini
Alessio Quaglini has over 15 years of professional experience, developed in banking, regulatory body and management consulting. Prior to joining Hex Trust, Alessio was the Head of Strategy Asia for BBVA, overseeing the overall business development and geographical footprint in Asia. Among the responsibilities, Alessio helped the Bank set up branches and obtain regulatory approvals in Taiwan, South Korea, Australia, and Japan. Alessio was subsequently Director of Financial Institutions at First Abu Dhabi Bank, where he was responsible for developing the bank's business with Financial Institutions and Non-Bank Financial Institutions in North Asia.
Alessio also worked at the Italian Financial Services Authority (Consob) in Rome, where he was responsible for the supervision of public equity and derivatives markets in the market abuse department. Alessio earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in telecommunication engineering from La Sapienza University in Rome and his MBA from IE Business School.
About Paolo Gagliano
Paolo Gagliano has 30+ years of experience in Corporate Finance, Investment Banking and Credit Markets in senior roles in major Swiss, UK, German, Italian and Spanish Banks out of their offices in London, Milan and Hong Kong. For over a decade Paolo managed the Italian Corporate & Investment Banking unit of Santander, one of Europe’s leading financial institutions.
For more information: visit hextrust.com or follow Hex Trust on LinkedIn and Twitter.
