EU Grants 230 MiCA Licenses as 80% of Crypto Firms Face July 1 Deadline

Four days before the European Union's MiCA compliance deadline, regulators have approved roughly 230 licenses – leaving more than 80% of the region's crypto firms without authorization, according to data from national watchdogs.

Germany leads with 56 licenses, followed by the Netherlands at 26 and France with 21. The distribution reflects a pattern that has worried smaller operators for months: most applicants targeted the most responsive jurisdictions, planning to passport services across the other 26 member states. The strategy works for those who got in early. For everyone else, time has run out.

Spain's CNMV has ruled out any extension of the July 1 transitional period, Reuters reported. The position aligns with ESMA's earlier guidance: a pending application offers no protection after the deadline. The rule is binary – the right to serve European clients ends July 1, or when the regulator decides on a pending application, whichever comes first. Platforms with open files must suspend EU services until approval arrives.

Binance withdrew its MiCA application in Greece and is now seeking a license in another member state, a sign of the pressure even on the market's largest players.

The compliance costs and documentary burden have already pushed many small players to exit or merge. An oligopoly is forming around a handful of well-capitalized platforms. Of more than 1,200 virtual asset service providers once active in the EU, only a few hundred hold a full license.

Non-compliant platforms face three options: suspend European services, transfer clients to licensed operators, or rush a file that should have been completed months ago. The July 1 deadline will not move. ESMA said it. The CNMV confirmed it. The numbers speak for themselves.