MiCA license comes in for Crypto.com, OKX, and BitPanda for full EU operation

Crypto.com finally activated its MiCA license, becoming one of the fully regulated brokerages for the European Union. The exchange has the advantage of hosting one of the largest crypto markets, even with the stringent stablecoin regulations in Europe. 

Crypto.com announced the full enforcement of its MiCA license, turning it into one of the compliant crypto brokers for the European Union. 

We’re proud to announce that today we’ve received full approval of our MiCA license. https://t.co/ijU4pgLuhu

— Crypto.com (@cryptocom) January 27, 2025

Other EU-based brokerages like BitPanda have also secured their versions of the license. The international brokerage is registered with the German BaFin, also having a full MiCAR license.

BitPanda Global is one of the long-running brokerages that have been compliant with Euro-area requirements.

OKX also joined as one of the first recipients of the license, becoming one of the first major centralized exchanges with full MiCA compliance. The market also achieved pre-authorization last week, later fully enforcing the license. 

The list of MiCA compliant exchanges grows

The three brokerages join Circle on the list of MiCA compliant entities. The Euro-area regulation was also seen as potentially usable in other regions, as a way to restrict and track digital assets. 

At the beginning of the new year, MoonPay also joined the list of MiCA-compliant payment processing and crypto services. The app saw more than 750,000 new account registrations after the announcement, driven by the recent spike in demand for Solana ecosystem tokens.

Binance has also prepared ahead of time for the enforcement of MiCA by removing USDT pairs, but is yet to announce its own licensing status.

Crypto.com has also been on a long path to legalizing its services, and it got on the final stretch of the licensing process after receiving in-principle permission this January. The license will allow the crypto platform to offer its full range of services in the EU while following the requirements on stablecoins and transaction reporting. 

Crypto.com doubles down on the EU region

The move may increase the usage of Crypto.com services in the European space. The app is now ranked #1 for mobile finance on the US market. Demand for the app has increased since January 15, accelerating after President Trump-linked memecoins increased the demand for SOL and other Solana tokens. 

Crypto.com brings around 3.24% of its site users from Germany, increasing by around 24% in December 2024. The service is preferred by younger users, part of the latest wave of crypto adoption. In the European Union, Belgium, France, and Slovenia are some of the biggest markets for Crypto.com.

EU countries mostly lag behind other markets in terms of crypto adoption, following years of choking restrictions.

For now, the removal of USDT services and limitations has not affected most everyday users. However, Crypto.com offers a gateway to all new crypto trends, and a fully legal status may encourage more users to try out crypto assets. Limitations on buying coins and tokens may depend on project-specific restrictions. 

Following the full licensing news, CRO traded within its usual range at around $0.13. CRO is seen as undervalued in comparison to Crypto.com’s prominence and recent spike in activity. The app grants access not just to brokerage swaps, but to multiple Web3 services, DeFi and even NFT.

USDC supply grows along with demand for compliant stablecoins

USDC retained its position as the fastest-growing stablecoin. In the past 30 days, the asset added 8.6B to its balance, with 5.25B minted on the Solana chain. 

In the past day, Circle added another 250M USDC, part of its series of mints, which then get sent to the treasury or to exchanges. USDC is also increasing its turnover on Solana as a tool for DEX trading. USDC expanded its total supply to 52.33B, steadily gaining on USDT.

The full enforcement of MiCA also translated into one of the first major burns for USDT tokens. The supply of USDT is down 1.4B in the past month, replaced by other tokens and trading pairs. For now, USDT remains a highly used asset for global crypto activities, but may see an outflow of users from the Euro area, if there are alternatives like USDC. 

Stablecoins have now grown to 212.5B, based on Artemis data. This type of asset has been scrutinized for its real stability, leading to the requirement for having reserves in an accredited Euro-area bank. Tether is also looking to acquire access to banking, transforming USDT into a MiCA-compliant asset.

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