An Asset-Referenced Token (ART) is a type of crypto-asset that is not an electronic money token and that purports to maintain a stable value by referencing another value or right or a combination thereof, including one or more official currencies.

An issuer that intends to offer ARTs to the public or to seek their admission to trading in Italy as a Home Member State must be:

• a legal person or other undertaking that has received from the Bank of Italy, in agreement with Consob, the authorisation referred to in Article 21(1) of Regulation (EU) 1114/2023 and, consequently, has hade the white paper approved

or

• a credit institution that has provided the Bank of Italy with the documents and information required by Article 17(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) 1114/2023, and the notification has been considered complete by the Bank of Italy, in agreement with Consob, and that has obtained from the Bank of Italy, in agreement with Consob, the approval of the white paper referred to in Article 17(1)(a).  

The approved white paper and any marketing communications must be published on the issuer's website as long as the asset-referenced tokens are held by the public.

When Italy is the Host Member State, a credit institution or a legal person or other undertaking established in the Union may offer ARTs to the public or seek their admission to trading in Italy subsequently the receipt by Consob of the information laid down in Article 109(3) of Regulation (EU) 1114/2023, included the white paper approved by the Home Member State.

An Electronic Money Token (EMT) is a type of crypto-asset that purports to maintain a stable value by referencing the value of one official currency.

An issuer that intends to offer EMTs to the public or to seek their admission to trading must:

• be a credit institution or an e-money institution

and

• have notified the Bank of Italy with the white paper on the crypto-assets (approval is not required).

The notified white paper and any marketing communications must be published on the issuer's website as long as the e-money tokens are held by the public.

An Other Than is a crypto-asset other than asset-referenced tokens (ARTs) and electronic money tokens (EMTs). This crypto-asset, therefore, does not purport to stabilise its value and this category includes the Utility Token that provides access to goods or services offered by the issuer of that token.

An issuer that intends to offer Other Than crypto-assets to the public or to seek their admission to trading in Italy, as the Home Member State, must:

• be a legal person;

and

• have notified Consob with the white paper on the crypto-assets (approval is not required) at least 20 working days before the date of their publication.

The notified white paper and any marketing communications must be published on the offeror's website and on the website of the person applying for admission to trading as long as the crypto-assets are held by the public.

When Italy is the Host Member State, a legal person may offer Other Than to the public or seek their admission to trading in Italy subsequently the receipt by Consob of the notification of the white paper from the Home Member State.

Title V of MiCAR outlines provisions for crypto-assets services carried out by new service providers, who must be specifically authorized entities (so-called “Specialized CASPs”, i.e. crypto-asset service providers which are not already subject to a special regulation by virtue of their status as already supervised entities) as well as by financial intermediaries. Specifically, financial intermediaries (already supervised) may provide certain services upon simple notification to the competent authority (so-called "notifiable" services) while other services will require authorization (so-called "non-notifiable" services).

The application for authorization as a crypto-asset service provider and the related procedure are specified in Articles 62 and 63 of MiCAR, while the notification of the starting date of the provision of crypto-asset services by supervised intermediaries and the related procedure are specified in Article 60 of MiCAR.

The European Commission will publish the Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) and Implementing Technical Standards (ITS) to specify the information required in the application for authorization and in the notification, as well as to establish the relevant formats, templates and standard procedures.

“Specialized CASPs” must obtain authorization from Consob, following the opinion of the Bank of Italy. Entities already authorized must notify the relevant Authority that granted the authorisation.