Binance Halts EU Services After MiCA Failure, Faces US Probe

Binance will halt services in several European Union countries effective July 1, the exchange said, after failing to secure authorization under the bloc's Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation. The company had earlier withdrawn its Greek license application, a step needed for MiCA compliance across the 27-nation bloc.

In the United States, the Department of Justice is investigating potential violations of sanctions laws, following reports of over $1 billion in Iran-linked USDT flows through the platform. U.S. senators have confirmed the probe, the exchange said in its February 2026 compliance update.

The same update touted a sharp drop in sanctions-related activity. Transactions tied to sanctioned entities fell to 0.009% of total volume by mid-2025, a 96.8% reduction from January 2024, according to Binance. The company credited its 1,500-person compliance team – 25% of its workforce – and investments in monitoring and reporting systems. Over 71,000 law enforcement requests were processed in 2025, leading to more than $131 million in seized illicit funds, Binance said.

The EU halt is a setback in a key market. MiCA requires exchanges to hold a license in one member state to serve the entire bloc. Binance's withdrawal from the Greek process left it without a path to authorization, the company said. The service pause covers several countries; the exchange did not name all of them.