[REVISION HISTORY]

EU MiCA regulatory review and stablecoin enforcement

22 recorded revisions of this situation.

What changed

2026-10-21 00:53 UTC → 2026-10-28 07:45 UTC · added ~~removed~~

The formal review of the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation continues to highlight tensions between industry innovation and regulatory oversight. Circle has intensified its calls for the European Commission to amend reserve requirements, arguing that mandates to hold 30% to 60% of reserves in commercial bank deposits create vulnerabilities. Circle and the European Central Bank (ECB) advocate for liquidity-based standards to ensure reserves can be made available within specific timeframes. Regulatory enforcement has escalated through the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). ESMA has issued an opinion requiring MiCA-authorized crypto-asset service providers (CASPs) to cease all services related to non-compliant asset-referenced tokens (ART) and e-money tokens (EMT), such as USDT and PYUSD. This prohibition covers trading, custody, transfers, investment advice, and portfolio ~~management. National regulators must oversee the reduction of client exposure,~~ management, with a final compliance deadline of January 8, 2027. Recent developments show a push for expanded oversight. The European Banking Authority (EBA) has recommended that the Commission expand MiCA to include crypto-asset lending and decentralized finance (DeFi) activities, proposing suitability tests, leverage limits, and a certification regime for DeFi protocols. Furthermore, the EU Council has agreed to place the most significant cross-border CASPs under direct ESMA supervision, moving away from a pure home-country passporting model. As the framework enters a mature ~~phase of full application,~~ phase, the total number of authorized CASPs has ~~risen to 331.~~ risen, with Germany ~~maintains its leadership in~~ leading at 89 firms. In Slovenia, the ~~EU with 79 authorized firms, driven largely by recent authorizations~~ Ministry of ~~regional cooperative banks. France and the Netherlands follow~~ Finance has proposed legislative amendments to align national penalties with ~~35 and 29 authorized firms, respectively. In other jurisdictions,~~ MiCA requirements. Meanwhile, the Czech National Bank ~~is reviewing five~~ continues to review new license ~~applications while supervising 11 existing domestic providers. Regulators there emphasize~~ applications, emphasizing that MiCA ~~focuses on the~~ regulates provider conduct ~~and quality of service providers~~ rather than the inherent risks of underlying ~~assets, noting that licensing does not provide the same protections as traditional investment services, such as universal guarantee funds for asset losses.~~ assets.

Versions

Select a version to see what changed compared to the one before it.