The race is launched! The European Fintech giant, Trade Republic, obtained a complete license from the German financial regulator (Bafin) to provide services related to cryptocurrencies. This decision makes Trade Republic the last company to obtain a license as part of the Crypto-active markets (Mica) markets.
The key points of this article:Trade Republic has obtained a complete mica license from the Bafin, allowing it to offer services related to cryptocurrencies throughout Europe.
The mica licenses granting process is slowly advanced in Europe, with only 25 companies that have obtained this license since its entry into force.
Trade republic validates a mica license with German regulation
According to Patrick Hansenprincipal director of EU strategy and policy at Circlewho shared the news on X, Trade Republic is now authorized to keep digital assets, execute orders, receive and transmit orders, and provide cryptocurrency transfers on behalf of its customers. This license allows him to offer all these services in 30 pays European Economic Area (EEE) even if the company will always have to rely on trading platforms and market content to execute transactions. Patrick Hansen described this decision as a evidence that the region's financial institutions are already making efforts to obtain A mica license Before the end of the transition period:
“The race is launched: neobancs, brokers, other fintechs and even traditional banks all move quickly to secure their mica licenses before the end of transition periods. »»
Patrick Hansen, principal director of EU strategy and policy at Circle – Source: Mitrade.com
The transition period For the unified crypto regulations in Europe is the moment when cryptos entities can operate sans licence MiCA in the EU. It should end at the beginning of July 2026 or until the regulator grants or refuses authorization to companies that have applied.
Trade Republic now plays in the Great Court and will be able to offer all the services related to crypto in Europe
25 companies have obtained mica licenses
Trade Republic is one of the main online brokers in Europe, with more than $ 100 billion in management and eight million customers in several European countries. The company extended to Italy earlier this year. At the same time, the authorization of Trade Republic to offer cryptocurrency services by the bafin means that 25 companies have now obtained licenses as part of the Mica regulation. However, this highlights the slowness From the license granting process in Europe, given that Mica entered into force in December 2024! There were also concern as for the fact that the regulatory approach of the region could harm his efforts To attract cryptos entities, especially when other regulators in Asia, the United States and the Middle East have become more permissive to industry. However, it seems that companies continue to make efforts to comply new regulatory standards in Europe. Interesting, the German financial regulator is in the lead in terms of approval rate, the Bafin Having issued 9 licenses out of the 25 granted. The manager of Circle noted that this represents 36 % of all regulated cryptos service providers on the continent.
European regulations in terms of crypto platform is one of the strictest in the world
Potential mica impacts on the European crypto sector
So far, the biggest name to have obtained a license is Circlethe transmitter of the stablecoin USDC. The company remains the only global transmitter of Stablecoins under Mica license after obtaining authorization as an institution of electronic currency of the French ACPR (Control and Resolution Control), allowing it to issue the USDC and the EURC. Other companies cryptos Who have obtained licenses include OKX, Bitgo Europe, Moonpay, Hidden Road, Socios.com and Bitstaete. Note that Ripple recently bought Hidden Roadprobably to more easily access European markets. While some large Cryptos companies already have licences MiCAothers, such as Binance, Kraken, Robinhood and Tether, are currently not allowed to operate in the region. Although most of them started the demand process, there is a risque That some of these companies cannot operate in Europe. Tether, for example, has already decided not to obtain a mica license for its stablecoin usdt, saying that the requirements are dangerous for stablecoins. This has led platforms that comply with Mica in the region to remove the USDT from their list. However, it is not only Large companies which are affected. Some experts believe that MiCA could cause lasting damage to the scene of startups Cryptos in Europebecause most startups do not meet license standards or cannot bear the cost of the process. Lawyer specializing in cryptocurrencies, Ilja Nikiforov, predicted that around 75 % of cryptos companies recorded in Europe would lose their registration By mid-2010 if they cannot obtain a mica license. Finally, he added that the financing of European cryptos startups decreased by more than 90 % compared to the 2022 summit.