MiCA Goes Live and Germany Runs Away With 57 Licenses While Five EU States Show Up Empty-Handed 🏃‍♂️

Europe’s landmark Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) takes effect Wednesday, but the bloc’s first unified crypto framework is producing sharply uneven licensing outcomes across member states, according to interim register data from the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) compiled Friday.

Germany has issued 57 crypto-asset service provider (CASP) authorizations under MiCA, representing roughly 23% of the 244 total approvals logged across EU and European Economic Area jurisdictions. France follows with 26 companies, about 11% of all authorizations, placing it alongside the Netherlands as the bloc’s second-largest hub for MiCA-licensed firms.

France has nonetheless accelerated activity in the final stretch before the July 1 transitional deadline, accounting for the largest share of last-minute approvals. ESMA interim data shows French regulators authorized five CASPs between June 18 and June 22, the highest count in that window, out of 11 authorizations issued across EU and EEA jurisdictions. Malta followed with two approvals. The French cohort includes Bpifrance Investissement, RCUBE Asset Management, Paymium, Leonod and Meria. Cointelegraph approached Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) for comment but did not receive a response by publication.

The geographic concentration of MiCA approvals mirrors the broader structure of the bloc’s financial system. According to 2024 EU data, Germany, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Ireland collectively account for around 72% of the financial assets and liabilities of financial corporations in the EU.

Implementation gaps are also visible. Greece, Hungary, Poland, Portugal and Romania have not issued any MiCA licenses as of June 26, according to the ESMA interim register. Greece’s position follows Binance’s decision to withdraw its application there, with the firm shifting its licensing plans to another MiCA jurisdiction. Poland remains without an active framework after delays in implementing legislation followed by three reported presidential vetoes.

Italy, by contrast, dominates ESMA’s non-compliant CASP register, accounting for 160 of the 162 entries as of June 26, with the Netherlands and Slovakia recording additional cases. The full scope of MiCA’s harmonizing effect on Europe’s crypto market will be tested once the July 1 transitional deadline is in force.