End-of-Year considerations and Christmas greetings

Letter to Clients, Investors, Colleagues, and Collaborators

Dear all,

2024 has been an extraordinary year for Bitcoin—I do not hesitate to call it historic. Equally remarkable has been CheckSig’s growth, closely intertwined with the dynamics of the Italian crypto market. I want to share with you what we have learned and how we are preparing for 2025. At the end, my best wishes.

Events of 2024

January: Approval of Bitcoin ETFs

On January 10, Bitcoin ETFs were approved, ten years after the first application. Promoted by major international asset managers such as BlackRock and Fidelity, they raised nearly $50 billion, shattering any records in ETF history. Today, Bitcoin ETFs are more significant for BlackRock than gold ETFs.

January: CheckSig as the First (and Only) Tax Withholding Agent in Italy

Leveraging the opportunity introduced by the 2023 Budget Law, and following the clarification of rules by the Revenue Agency in October 2023, CheckSig decided to offer tax withholding services for free. This service was a tremendous success, with an adoption rate exceeding 75%, demonstrating that crypto investors want to comply with tax regulations and seek easy ways to do so.

March: Bitcoin Hits a New All-Time High

Fueled by capital inflows through ETFs, Bitcoin price hits a new all-time high. It was the first of the year, and while subsequent retracements were significant, they did not disrupt the growth trend. ETF investors are less speculative than hedge funds that previously dominated the market, ensuring greater price stability.

March: Sam Bankman-Fried Sentenced

Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison for embezzling $8 billion from FTX clients, the cryptocurrency exchange he founded, now collapsed. In November 2023, Changpeng Zhao and Binance were also sentenced. The sheriff has come to town, in the crypto “Wild West.”

March: Craig Wright Is Not Satoshi Nakamoto

Craig Wright’s claim to be Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin’s mysterious creator, was debunked by the UK High Court, confirming what many already knew. The ruling resulted from a 2021 lawsuit filed by the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (Copa), a coalition of crypto companies, including CheckSig and the Digital Gold Institute. One less fraudster in circulation.

April: CheckSig Clear Summit

CheckSig hosted a highly successful event on Bitcoin and crypto adoption in traditional finance. Over 300 professionals from major Italian financial institutions gathered at the Fondazione Cariplo Conference Center to explore crypto adoption in banking.

Meanwhile, the “Il Salone del Risparmio”, the main Italian expo for asset managers, in the same month rejected CheckSig’s participation, claiming it was “not aligned with the event’s principles and objectives focused on promoting savings management in Italy.” Yet BlackRock and Fidelity, issuers of Bitcoin ETFs, were present.

April: Happy Birthday, Bitcoin

Some celebrate Bitcoin’s birthday on January 3, marking the network’s launch in 2009, while others celebrate on October 31, when the white paper was published in 2008. However, Bitcoin’s real birthday is its halving, occurring roughly every four years when Bitcoin issuance halves. This fourth halving marks Bitcoin’s fourth birthday, as Bitcoin time is measured in blocks: a Bitcoin year equals 210,000 blocks, about four Earth years, akin to a planet orbiting between Mars and Jupiter.

April: Series A for CheckSig

Following steady growth in 2023 (+154% revenue, +165% clients, +333% assets under custody), CheckSig closed a €2.7 million Series A investment round, reaching a €25 million post-money valuation.

May: Independent Financial Advisory Partnerships

CheckSig partnered with IFA Consulting, a historic independent financial advisory firm, integrating IFA into CheckSig’s Bitcoin custody solution. The partnership raises transparency and security standards for crypto investments, benefiting investors and the broader market.

June: Deloitte Confirms CheckSig’s SOC Attestations

CheckSig remains the only Italian fintech with SOC attestations, confirmed for the fourth consecutive year by Deloitte Enterprise Risk Services. These certifications demonstrate our commitment to the highest operational security standards.

June: MiCA Regulation Comes into Force

The European Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation took effect on June 30, supported by guidelines from MEF, Consob, and the Bank of Italy. While full implementation extends to December 2025, this marks the beginning of the end for opaque or fraudulent service providers.

July: Trump Supports Bitcoin

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump endorsed Bitcoin, highlighting its rise as the ninth-largest asset globally. He pledged to maintain the U.S. government’s Bitcoin reserves as a strategic asset.

July: CheckSig Extends Insurance Coverage

CheckSig renewed its insurance policy with Great Lakes Insurance SE (Munich RE), covering all crypto activities up to €4 million per incident—exceeding current client needs.

August: Swiss and Norwegian Central Banks Invest in Bitcoin

Swiss and Norwegian central banks invested $75 million and $180 million, respectively, in MicroStrategy, the largest Bitcoin holder listed on Nasdaq.

September: Crypto Staking with Integrated Tax Management

CheckSig launched the first staking service integrating tax management. Investors can earn from staking Ether and Solana securely while complying with tax obligations.

October: Open Letter Against 42% Crypto Capital Gains Tax

CheckSig led opposition to a proposed 42% tax on crypto gains, supported by representatives of Consob and ABI. The initiative highlighted constitutional violations and economic risks.

November: Trump Wins, Bitcoin Surges

Trump’s victory propelled Bitcoin above $75,000, marking a new record and accelerating adoption.

November: Bitcoin-Backed Loans

CheckSig acted as escrow holder for the first Bitcoin-backed loan in EU. More collateralized crypto loans have followed.

December: Bitcoin Tops $100,000

Favorable U.S. policies and comparisons to gold by the Federal Reserve boosted Bitcoin past $100,000.

December: Crypto Capital Gains Tax Kept at 26%

The crypto capital gain tax rate is kept at 26% for 2025, with adjustments planned for 2026. The government balanced innovation with fiscal responsibility.

CheckSig: A Team Effort

We have built an excellent team, highly motivated and with rare, if not unique, skills. I thank each and every one of my colleagues and collaborators: I am proud to be part of the team.

I must also thank the clients who have placed their trust in us and the investors who support us. We expect to close the year with triple-digit increases on all relevant metrics (clients, assets under custody, revenues) and we are working on major innovations for 2025: MiCA regulatory compliance, new products and services, new capital increase, take-off of operations in Switzerland.

Looking Ahead to 2025

The outlook for 2025 is promising: it is easy to predict Bitcoin above $140,000. Much will depend on the implementation of Trump’s promises, including the pardon to Ross Ulbricht and the creation of a national strategic reserve of Bitcoin. However, the EU market will drive growth.

In fact, with the entry into force of the MiCA regulation in June, the regulatory framework of the European Union has become clear and inclusive: the EU capital market will open up more and more in the next 12-18 months. This will avoid the dramatic price retracements observed in the past in favor of growth that will be certainly still volatile but surely more gradual.

The banking sector is also set to transform radically: we will see hundreds of Italian and EU operators entering the crypto services market. Within three years, one in two banks in Italy will offer crypto services, such as trading, custody and consultancy. Banks have the opportunity to better serve current customers and attract new ones: CheckSig is ready to support them in this transition.

My Best Wishes

Holidays have always been a time for family affection, friendships, and gifts with which we show each other mutual good. I hope that each of us can enjoy this time of the year, remembering and helping those who suffer. It is also a privileged time for our need for meaning and happiness, to make prevail “who and what, in the midst of hell, is not hell.” These words of Italo Calvino have always been dear to me and are repeated in the words of Fr. Giussani, proposed again this Christmas accompanied by a nativity scene by William Congdon: my wish and my gift for all of you is this video.

Ferdinando Ametrano