In a major move this week, cryptocurrency exchanges Bybit and OKX have inaugurated fully regulated platforms in Europe, riding on the wave of clearer regulatory guidelines drawing major exchanges to the region. Bybit.eu, a crypto exchange, announced on Wednesday it has been launched to cater to users in the European Economic Area (EEA) under the Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) license, part of the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) framework. Based in Austria, Bybit’s operations, established in late May, now hold a license in 29 EEA nations following the new rules.
Simultaneously, OKX, another crypto exchange, revealed that it too has introduced its fully regulated centralized crypto exchange in France utilizing MiCA passporting. Erald Ghoos, CEO of OKX Europe, underscored the significance of France as a key market and their foray into it as “a crucial step in our European growth.”
Bybit.eu will provide a multi-language platform supporting English, Polish, Portuguese, and Spanish, with the intention to incorporate German, French, Italian, and Romanian. The exchange asserts to aggregate liquidity from various providers and offer sophisticated trading tools suited for European retail and institutional users. On the other hand, the OKX platform includes euro trading pairs, staking products, trading bots, and localized customer support.
The dual launches coincide with the full implementation of MiCA on Dec. 30, 2024. The new regulations standardize crypto regulation across the EU and introduce a passporting mechanism, enabling licensed firms to operate in any EEA country without the requirement for additional approvals.
Notably, the EEA is witnessing heightened activity following the harmonization of its regulatory environment. This week, the Global Dollar (USDG) stablecoin was launched in the EU, with Paxos, the issuer, asserting compliance with MiCA. Earlier, on June 28, Bitvavo crypto exchange received a MiCA license from the Dutch Authority for Financial Markets, enabling it to operate across the EEA. Kraken, one of the world’s longest-standing crypto exchanges, also announced its EEA expansion on June 25 after securing a MiCA license.
Konstantins Vasilenko, co-founder and executive of Paybis, believes that Europe is leading in the global crypto race under its MiCA framework, even surpassing US President Donald Trump’s crypto-friendly America. “Our EU volumes spiked 70% in the first quarter when the MiCA licensing window opened on Jan. 1, 2025; the number of trades remained almost the same, indicating that the new money was major and more thought-out,” Vasilenko pointed out.
