Transition Period for MiCA Regulation Ends in the EU

As of July 1, 2026, the transition period for cryptocurrency platforms under the MiCA regulation has ended in the EU. Companies that failed to obtain a license must cease servicing European clients, according to a statement from the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).

The transition period allowed companies operating under national rules until December 30, 2024, to continue their activities until July 1, 2026, or until they received a license or were denied one. After this date, operating without authorization is considered a violation of EU law.

According to the ESMA registry, by the end of the transition period, there were 244 authorized crypto service providers in the EU and EEA. In the final days, several companies in Italy, France, Malta, and Spain received licenses. Notable platforms with significant spot liquidity include Kraken, Coinbase, and Bitstamp, as reported by DefiLlama.

Source: DefiLlama.

Previously, Binance withdrew its application for a MiCA license in Greece. The exchange plans to seek authorization in another, yet unnamed EU country.

What Unlicensed Companies Must Do

After July 1, any company without a MiCA license must stop providing crypto services to clients in the EU. ESMA has required such industry participants to prepare winding-down plans in advance: ensuring an orderly exit from the market, notifying clients, and allowing them to transfer digital assets to an authorized provider or a non-custodial wallet.

This also applies to companies outside the EU. They cannot provide services to European clients or solicit them, except under a narrow model of reverse solicitation—where the client initiates contact with a foreign provider without marketing from the provider's side.

On June 29, Bybit announced a phased limitation of certain services on its global platform for EEA residents. The regulated European platform of the group is Bybit EU, which operates through an entity authorized under MiCA. Access to this exchange's products requires a separate account.

MiCA Under Review

Meanwhile, the European Commission (EC) has already begun reviewing the regulation. In May, the EC launched public (for individuals) and targeted (on more technical and legal issues) consultations to assess whether MiCA remains a suitable document given market developments and international regulation.

In its announcement, the EC set a deadline for feedback until August 31, while the targeted consultation page indicated a deadline of September 30, 2026. The target audience includes representatives from the crypto industry, digital asset issuers, service providers, banks, regulators, central banks, and finance ministries.

According to CoinDesk, one of the main issues under review is stablecoins. When MiCA was being developed, the focus was primarily on exchanges and other crypto service providers. Since then, stablecoins have become more significant for global payments, and other jurisdictions have begun to establish their own regulatory frameworks.

In the consultation document, the EC specifically asks market participants whether the MiCA rules for stablecoins remain suitable or require adjustments. Questions pertain to reserves, redemption rights, risks of multi-jurisdictional issuance, and potential recognition of third-country regimes.

Currently, MiCA does not contain a general equivalence regime for global stablecoins. Such a mechanism could allow the EU to consider the regulations of other jurisdictions and recognize specific foreign regimes upon meeting certain conditions.

The EC also inquires whether the possibility of multi-issuer stablecoin models should be maintained, where one global issuer operates through different legal structures within and outside the EU. The section on reserves and liquidity should clarify whether additional buffers for redemptions in the EEA are needed, more frequent reporting on reserves, and coordination mechanisms between regulators from different jurisdictions in stress scenarios.

Next Steps

Lawyers Sebastian Barling and Eva Legler from Skadden commented to CoinDesk that the MiCA review is linked to the need to align the European regime with international approaches and maintain market competitiveness. Barling also noted that industry attention is shifting from stablecoins to asset tokenization.

“2025 was likely the year of stablecoins. This year, I am spending much more time discussing broader asset tokenization,” he remarked.

In the consultation document, the EC indeed highlighted a separate section on the legal status of tokens, including tokenized financial instruments, issues of ownership, transfer of rights, collateral, and custody.

It is worth noting that the traditional financial sector in the EU is preparing its own alternative to stablecoins. A consortium of 37 major banks (including BNP Paribas, ING, and Rabobank) is developing a single euro stablecoin, Qivalis, aimed at reducing the region's dependence on dollar-based digital infrastructure.