Leading the MiCA Charge

Stauber’s appointment comes as Bitget aims to comply with the Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) in the European Union. The company has applied for a MiCA license in Austria, anticipating regulatory approval by the second quarter of 2026. Until then, Bitget EU will not offer services in the European Economic Area (EEA).

Ensuring Compliance and Integrity

Bitget EU is implementing rigorous compliance measures, including IP detection and enhanced Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols, to prevent unlicensed entities from accessing the platform. Stauber emphasizes that only assets meeting MiCA’s whitepaper, liquidity, and disclosure standards will be listed.

Market Integrity and Surveillance

Operating as a broker, Bitget EU will adhere to best-execution principles, sourcing liquidity from diverse providers. The platform will also deploy advanced tools to detect and prevent market abuse, aligning with European Securities and Markets Authority standards.

The Vienna hub was selected for its strategic location and robust regulatory environment, making it an ideal governance and compliance center for EEA operations.

Transitioning Existing Users

Once authorized, existing EEA users on Bitget’s global platform will be invited to transition to Bitget EU, offering them a compliant and secure trading experience.

This strategic expansion is crucial for Bitget’s growth in Europe, positioning it as a leader in regulatory compliance within the crypto space.

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Under the MiCA license, Kraken joins the ranks of other major crypto exchanges like Coinbase and Bybit, which have also secured similar licenses, enabling them to operate seamlessly across the EEA. Meanwhile, Crypto.com has obtained an in-principle MiCA license, signifying preliminary approval pending final confirmation.

Regulatory Authorization and Compliance

Kraken’s MiCA-regulated entity is officially authorized by the Central Bank of Ireland, enabling it to directly serve all EEA clients. This license marks the completion of Kraken’s regulatory compliance under MiCA, which establishes consistent rules for crypto-asset service providers within the European Union.

Services Available to EEA Clients

With the MiCA framework in place, Kraken’s EEA clients can now access regulated services that are passported across member countries. The platform supports over 450 digital assets, with plans for further expansion. Users will enjoy simplified onboarding and local payment method support, as well as institutional-grade trading services, including over-the-counter options.

Kraken’s commitment to regulatory compliance ensures that its users benefit from a secure and reliable trading environment, enhancing trust and transparency in crypto transactions within the region.

Additional Regulatory Licenses in Europe

This significant development complements Kraken’s existing regulatory licenses in Europe. The company is already in possession of a Markets in Financial Instruments Directive license, allowing it to offer regulated derivatives trading for advanced users in EU markets. Additionally, Kraken holds an Electronic Money Institution license, enabling it to provide fiat currency services and payment solutions across the region.

The Kraken MiCA License not only enhances the company’s operational reach but also strengthens its position as a leading player in the European crypto market. With a robust regulatory foundation, Kraken is well-positioned to foster greater adoption and innovation within the digital asset industry.

As Kraken continues to expand its services, the MiCA license stands as a testament to its dedication to regulatory excellence and customer satisfaction.

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Despite a direct call to action from former US President Donald Trump, the cryptocurrency-related bills he supported failed to progress through a key procedural stage in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. Trump had encouraged Republican representatives to pass the legislation concerning the regulation of payment stablecoins as part of a broader initiative to advance cryptocurrency legislation ahead of the August recess.

In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump urged Republicans to support the GENIUS Act, which seeks to regulate payment stablecoins in the US. This bill was one of three others aimed at addressing market structure and central bank digital currencies that Republican leaders were promoting as part of their “crypto week” initiative.

In another development, Abacus Market, the largest Bitcoin-enabled Western darknet marketplace, abruptly went offline, sparking suspicions of an exit scam. The entire infrastructural setup, including its clearnet mirror, is now inaccessible, according to a report by TRM Labs. The sudden disappearance led TRM to speculate that the “operators might have staged an exit scam, ceasing operations and absconding with users’ funds.”

Ripple, meanwhile, confirmed its plan to apply for a MiCA license, aimed at expanding its cryptocurrency and stablecoin operations across the European Economic Area. A representative from Ripple stated that the company acknowledges the “significant opportunity in the European market” and intends to become “MiCA-compliant”.

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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.

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“We greatly appreciate our effective collaboration with the AFM throughout this journey,” said Jeetan Patel, Chief Risk Officer at Bitvavo. “The process has been smooth.”

Bitvavo currently stands as the world’s largest EUR spot exchange. The crypto exchange now joins the ranks of Coinbase and Kraken, both of which have also recently obtained a MiCA license. Coinbase received its license from Luxembourg, while Kraken got its approval from Ireland. The Netherlands has similarly granted MiCA licenses to MoonPay and three other crypto firms towards the end of 2024.

The MiCA regulation, which was fully implemented at the end of last year, furnishes a single, comprehensive regulatory framework for cryptocurrency companies across the European Union. “To ensure fair competition in Europe, it’s crucial that rules are consistently formulated and applied across all member states,” stated Mark Nuvelstijn, Bitvavo’s CEO. “This license provides clarity, assurance, and aids Bitvavo in achieving its goal – to emerge as Europe’s leading digital asset trading platform.”

Reports suggest that the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini is also nearing the final stages of obtaining MiCA approval from Malta, as previously reported by The Block.

Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet offering news, research, and data. Major investor Foresight Ventures has held a majority stake in The Block since November 2023. Foresight Ventures also invests in other entities within the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently, providing unbiased, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry.

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Bitvavo co-founder and CEO, Mark Nuvelstijn, affirmed the development on Friday, voicing his entire backing for the MiCA initiative. “We wholeheartedly endorse the central tenets of MiCAR,” he stated. He further stressed the necessity for consistent rules formulation and enforcement across all European countries to ensure a uniform playing field.

The company’s chief risk officer, Jeetan Patel, described the license acquisition as a result of “constructive collaboration”. He highlighted that the license offers Bitvavo the assurance and clear guidance needed to operate confidently in Europe.

Patel appreciated the AFM’s cooperation throughout the process, which he termed as efficient and rigorous. He added, “In the recent past, we have undertaken all the required steps in the licensing procedure and have confirmed compliance with the comprehensive MiCAR regulatory prerequisites.”

The news follows a series of MiCA license approvals across Europe. Notably, Kraken secured its license from the Central Bank of Ireland, Coinbase from the Luxembourg Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier, and Bybit from Austria’s Financial Market Authority (FMA).

Moreover, in December 2024, MoonPay, a crypto payments company, was approved to operate as a licensed crypto business in the Netherlands under the MiCA legislation. This regulatory framework has triggered a boost in investor confidence across Europe, with trading volumes from EU customers increasing by 70% in Q1 2025, as reported by Paybis’ co-founder and chief business development officer, Konstantins Vasilenko.

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As MiCA approaches its final implementation stages, policymakers are focusing on regulating DeFi, an area that still raises many questions, states Vyara Savova, the senior policy lead at the European Crypto Initiative (EUCI). During an appearance on Cointelegraph’s Chain Reaction X Spaces show on June 4, Savova mentioned that DeFi protocols are still in a regulatory grey area.

According to Savova, there is ambiguity regarding DeFi protocols as they are theoretically beyond MiCA’s scope. She went on to add, “No one actually knows what EU policymakers mean by DeFi.” She predicts that around mid-2026, EU authorities will embark on the task of legally defining decentralization.

Early MiCA framework received substantial criticism due to its weaknesses concerning decentralized protocols. It demanded DeFi platforms to comply with the same licensing and Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements as traditional financial services firms. A significant addition to the bill, Recital 22, stated that “fully decentralized” crypto-asset service providers “should not fall within the scope of this Regulation.”

Despite the MiCA framework being fully implemented at the end of 2024, lawmakers are constantly reviewing it every 12 to 18 months to fill in any potential regulatory gaps. However, contrary to several appeals from Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank, no progress will be made in the region regarding the MiCA II framework, according to Marina Markezic, executive director and co-founder of EUCI.

She added that current discussions revolving around stablecoins might result in specific legislative updates rather than a complete sequel to MiCA. In the meantime, the EU is yet to introduce new Anti-Money Laundering rules that will limit the use of privacy coins and anonymous crypto accounts. These provisions are expected to come into effect in 2027.

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BitGo, a prominent player in the crypto industry, specializes in providing custodial services for digital assets such as Bitcoin on behalf of their clients. The MiCA license will enable BitGo to extend its services to crypto-based companies as well as traditional financial institutions, including banks and asset managers within the EU.

“This license underlines our dedication to maintaining the highest levels of security, transparency, and trust,” stated Harald Patt, Managing Director of BitGo Europe.

BitGo, established in Palo Alto, California, in 2013, has been making strides to expand its presence in the EU. This includes the establishment of BitGo Europe, headquartered in Frankfurt, in 2023. Since then, BitGo has received additional registrations in various EU countries, including Italy, Spain, Poland and Greece.

“With the acquisition of the MiCA license, BitGo can now operate across the entire EU under a unified, forward-looking regulatory framework,” the company announced.

BitGo has yet to disclose the specific services it plans to roll out under the new license. However, the firm has mentioned that it is expanding its product suite to offer a broad range of institutional-grade digital asset solutions.

As of May 12, BaFin’s official records did not reflect BitGo’s MiCA license, showing only earlier registrations. BitGo was approached for additional details, but has not responded as of the time of this report.

Germany has established itself as a key jurisdiction for European businesses seeking MiCA registration, with BaFin issuing licenses to several other companies, such as Bitpanda and Boerse Stuttgart Digital Custody, in 2025.

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Besides USDT, Kraken will also gradually withdraw support for PayPal USD (PYUSD), Tether EURt (EURT), TrueUSD (TUSD), and TerraClassicUSD (UST) in the European market. The exchange states that these changes are aimed at ensuring long-term compliance and continuing to offer exceptional trading experiences to European clients.

In accordance with the guidelines set by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), Kraken plans a phased delisting process. Initially, by February 13, margin pairs involving the affected assets will be set to “reduce-only” for European Economic Area (EEA) clients. Consequently, EEA users will only be able to reduce or completely close out existing margin positions.

By February 27, the impacted tokens will be put in a “sell-only” mode, preventing EEA clients from generating deposit addresses for tokens like USDT, while still allowing trading. On March 24, Kraken will cease all spot trading for the affected assets, closing all open orders and conversions into other coins or fiat currencies.

Kraken has specified that these delistings will only impact clients in the EEA, including 30 countries such as Austria, Cyprus, Czechia, Malta, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and others. The move follows similar actions by Crypto.com and Coinbase, underlining the increasing compliance requirements within the European Union.

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Tether expressed dissatisfaction with the hurried developments in the European market, driven by the enforcement of the MiCA framework. “The rushed actions prompted by statements that do little to clarify the basis for such moves are disappointing,” a Tether spokesperson told Cointelegraph.

According to Tether, these MiCA-induced changes pose significant risks to EU consumers and the local crypto market. The company fears that such actions will expose EU consumers to increased risk as many tokens, not just USDt, are affected by these changes.

Tether warns that these regulatory changes could lead to a “disorderly” market at a time when MiCA is still in the early stages of implementation. Notably, Crypto.com’s MiCA-enforced delisting process will affect a total of 10 tokens, including Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC), Dai (DAI) stablecoin, and others.

Coinbase, another exchange that delisted USDT in December 2024, said it would delist six tokens to comply with MiCA. However, it delisted WBTC on the entire Coinbase platform for other reasons on December 19, 2024. A Coinbase spokesperson explained, “To meet regulatory requirements, we regularly review the assets we make available to customers on our platform and will consider re-enabling services for stablecoins that achieve MiCA compliance at a later date.”

In addition to potential consumer risks triggered by MiCA, Tether stressed that MiCA has negative implications for stablecoins licensed in the EU. The spokesperson indicated that the USD stablecoin market is almost negligible in Europe, unlike emerging markets where USDT is extremely popular.

Despite its concerns, Tether recognized the importance of established regulatory frameworks such as MiCA for sector growth and reaffirmed its commitment to compliance while introducing innovative technologies like Hadron and supporting transformative projects like Quantor, which are designed to be MiCA compliant.

This statement from Tether follows the European Securities and Markets Authority’s directive to European crypto asset service providers (CASPs) to start restricting non-MiCA-compliant stablecoins by the end of January 2025. The regulator also asked CASPs to completely restrict non-compliant stablecoins by the end of the first quarter of 2025.

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