On December 30, the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which introduces regulation of cryptocurrencies in the European Union member states, fully entered into force in the EU countries.
On December 30, the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which introduces regulation of cryptocurrencies in the European Union member states, fully entered into force in the EU countries.
As Global Government Fintech reminds, in April last year, European parliamentarians approved this document, making the EU the first major jurisdiction in the world to create a comprehensive regulatory framework for cryptoassets.
MiCA regulates the issuance of crypto-assets and related services. In particular, it introduces a pan-European licensing and supervision regime for crypto-asset issuers, crypto-platforms and crypto-asset service providers, including various tokens.
The center-right European People’s Party, which is the largest political group in the European Parliament, described the approval of MiCA as making Europe «the standard bearer in the global cryptocurrency market,» adding that it would «bring order to the Wild West of cryptoassets.»
In total, the regulation contains about 35 different powers regarding acts, regulations and implementing technical standards.
As MiCA is an EU regulation, national implementing legislation is not required for Member States. However, Member States must ensure that their national legislation complies with MiCA. For example, on 18 December 2024, the German Parliament adopted the Act on the Digitalisation of Financial Markets, which will facilitate the implementation of MiCA.
The provisions of the MiCA regulations apply to the following actions with virtual assets:
To provide virtual asset services, providers must:
As dev.ua previously reported, the European payments bank Banking Circle has launched the first regulated stablecoin EURI, pegged to the euro, which meets the requirements of the EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA).
As reported in the Ukraine Economic Outlook study, between 2016 and 2022, the lack of regulation of the crypto sector led to Ukraine losing $48.8 billion in GDP and $4 billion in taxes.
