Binance Plays Musical MiCA Chairs: Withdraws Greece Bid, Insists It's Still in the EU 🪑

Binance has formally withdrawn its Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license application with Greece's Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) and will seek authorization in another EU member state, the exchange said on Wednesday. "Binance has decided to withdraw its MiCA licence application with the Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) in Greece and pursue authorization in another EU Member State," the firm wrote. "When we are ready to announce that Member State, we will do so publicly." The decision comes days before the MiCA transitional period ends on July 1, a key deadline for crypto firms seeking to operate across the EU. Earlier, Gillian Lynch, Binance's Head of Europe and the United Kingdom, told Reuters that the exchange is "not leaving Europe" and would pursue authorization in another EU jurisdiction if its application in Greece did not move forward. "We may just have a different pathway to being authorized," Lynch added. Binance submitted its application in Greece in January, opting for the nation partly on account of its recent economic growth. According to a Reuters report, Binance held talks with regulators in Ireland, Latvia and Greece but faced resistance over its past money-laundering penalties, complex international structure and what officials viewed as a risk-taking culture. Binance had previously pushed back on a June 16 Reuters report that EU regulators were preparing to reject its MiCA application, saying Greece's HCMC had reviewed the application and considered it compliant, subject to further review by ESMA.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) said on Tuesday that crypto service providers that remain unauthorized by the deadline must take "immediate" steps to wind down their EU activities. Binance has notified European Union users that access to key services will be restricted after the exchange failed to secure MiCA authorization before the July 1 cutoff. Those restrictions include halting onboarding of new EU users and limiting certain services for EU-based accounts effective July 1, according to exchange notices shared by users on social media. The notices said users will still be able to withdraw their assets after that date, stating that "all digital assets are still available for withdrawal," in line with applicable regulatory requirements. Binance advised users to move assets to self-custody wallets or transfer funds to other crypto asset service providers (CASPs). A Binance representative said restrictions vary depending on users' jurisdictions and that no action is required for users not served through a local registered entity. "All user funds remain safe and secure. Our priority is to minimise disruption, provide clarity to users, and continue building a trusted and compliant digital asset ecosystem globally," a representative said.

The exchange's public messaging has stressed continued commitment to Europe. "Europe remains an important market for Binance. Our commitment to operating under a clear, fair, and harmonised MiCA framework is unchanged," Binance said in its statement. CEO Richard Teng said on June 24 that the exchange will secure a MiCA license in the "coming months," and co-founder Yi He added on Friday, "As for Binance and Europe, we take this market seriously. It's a small part of our business, but an important one, and we're committed to the EU and our customers there." CryptoQuant analyst Maartunn told Cointelegraph that euro-denominated pairs account for about 1% of Binance's global spot trading volume. However, Binance remains a significant trading venue for European users, handling between about $100 million and $250 million in daily euro-pair volume in 2026, with occasional spikes of about $600 million. Binance held an estimated 18.5% share of euro-denominated spot trading during the year, placing it second behind Kraken's 43.3% share, according to CryptoQuant's data.

Binance recorded over $400 million in net outflows during the week beginning June 22, according to DefiLlama data viewed by Cointelegraph on Sunday, with seven-day net outflows amounting to 0.3% of its $133.3 billion in tracked assets, or 0.35% of its $113.8 billion in crypto assets excluding BNB. Net outflows accelerated on Wednesday, when Binance announced its withdrawal from Greece's securities regulator, recording $1.96 billion in net outflows, followed by two more days of $2.52 billion and $1.46 billion. Rival exchanges have sought to attract Binance users ahead of the bloc's deadline; OKX recorded $285.5 million in net inflows over the same period, behind Bitget's $710 million and Bitfinex's $400 million. OKX received MiCA authorization in Malta in January 2025, while neither Bitget nor Bitfinex appears on ESMA's interim MiCA register, last updated on Friday. Revolut and OKX have been actively recruiting new users in EU member states ahead of next week's deadline as the crypto industry awaits the next move in Binance's European licensing saga.