Why EU regulators resisted Binance’s MiCA licence

Binance withdrew its application for a MiCA crypto-asset service provider licence in Greece after resistance from national regulators and the absence of a formal decision before the regulation’s transition deadline. The company said it will seek authorization in another EU member state and that Greece was its only formal submission. The European Securities and Markets Authority has instructed unauthorised crypto firms to stop onboarding new EU clients and to limit existing services to exit and withdrawal until they are licensed or leave the market.

Under the Markets in Crypto-Assets framework, a national regulator must assess an applicant’s management, qualifying shareholders, anti-money-laundering controls, custody arrangements, client-asset segregation, internal governance and group structure before granting a licence that is valid across all 27 EU states. Regulators can consult anti-money-laundering authorities and financial intelligence units during that process and must be able to justify any approval to peers and the public.

European authorities have pointed to Binance’s enforcement record in the United States as relevant to those assessments. In late 2023 Binance and founder Changpeng Zhao entered guilty pleas and agreed to combined payments exceeding $4 billion to resolve alleged violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, sanctions rules and money transmission laws. The Treasury’s FinCEN settlement totalled $3.4 billion and OFAC’s settlement $968 million; both included monitorship and compliance undertakings.

Regulators must also determine whether the exchange’s management and major shareholders exercise effective control consistent with sound governance. Zhao stepped down as CEO in November 2023 but remains a major beneficial owner. Gillian Lynch, Binance’s EU regional head, has stated that Zhao is fully removed from company management. National authorities must document that an EU entity is insulated from outside interference before extending a passported licence.

Several EU supervisors have already raised questions about Binance’s corporate and operating structure. Belgium ordered the group to stop providing virtual-currency services from outside the European Economic Area, citing unclear legal entities. The Dutch central bank fined Binance and the firm exited the Netherlands in 2023 after failing to register. A German regulator declined to grant a custody licence and Binance withdrew that application. French prosecutors opened a judicial probe in 2025 into alleged money laundering and tax fraud; Binance has denied wrongdoing.

Binance maintains it has rebuilt its compliance programme, employs roughly 1,500 compliance staff and has no outstanding MiCA issues. National competent authorities, however, must evaluate whether those changes are supported by verifiable evidence before granting a licence. Some EU states, including France, Italy and Austria, have warned that differences in national supervision could encourage firms to seek the regulator perceived as least strict.

If a member state certifies Binance after finding verifiable governance and compliance changes, MiCA would give the company EU-wide access. If no regulator accepts that responsibility in the near term, Binance would face restricted activity in the EU, with users directed to withdraw or sell and licensed competitors able to serve European customers.

Analysts estimate illicit cryptocurrency addresses received at least $154 billion in 2025, with stablecoins accounting for the largest share of that volume. That backdrop is a factor in regulator reviews of exchanges’ anti-money-laundering controls and asset safeguarding when deciding whether to grant passporting rights under MiCA.