REGULATORY RADAR MICA
Regulation is a sign that crypto has come of age
The EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulation will be a baptism of fire for some crypto businesses, but for established players already embracing regulation, it will be a huge opportunity.
B usinesses of any kind rarely welcome the arrival of new regulations, but for the crypto sector, MiCA, which took effect on December 30, 2024, represents a major step forward and a spur to growth. The implementation of MiCA will not be painless and will place significant new burdens on crypto service providers. For smaller companies, meeting the terms of MiCA may stretch their resources, even perhaps to breaking point. But MiCA also represents a coming of age for crypto in Europe. It is a recognition from the European
crypto is an established part of our financial infrastructure.
“MiCA has a lot of requirements and you need quite a few resources to address it. If you don’t have broad enough shoulders, it will take a lot of time, and some businesses might not survive.” BCB, meanwhile, has been at work on MiCA ever since the first consultations were launched and Arras is confident that BCB will meet the requirements very soon after their implementation. Proving your prudence The central pillar of MiCA is the requirement for full licensing of Crypto Assets Service Providers (CASPs). Licensing is overseen at national level by the relevant National Competent
It also represents an opportunity for crypto service providers themselves, creating standards for licensing and prudential regulation, which will provide crypto investors with confidence in their service provider and coin issuers. “This is the MIFID for crypto,” says Marie Arras, Head of Compliance for BCB payments and BCB markets in the EU. “The law harmonises the way we treat customers and how we do business. It will help the crypto business and will help the market grow.” While welcoming MiCA, Arras recognises that for some smaller operators it may prove a challenge.
Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) as well as the European Commission and Parliament that
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