53 Firms Secure MiCA Licenses, While Tether and Other Giants Remain Notably Absent

Six months after the European Union’s landmark Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation came into full effect, 53 digital asset firms have now received official authorization to operate across the bloc’s 30-member economic area, a major step in establishing a unified regulatory environment for crypto in Europe.

According to a July 7 update shared by Patrick Hansen, Director of EU Strategy and Policy at Circle, the list now includes 14 licensed stablecoin issuers from seven European countries, alongside 39 registered digital asset service providers (DASPs) authorized under MiCA.

Approved companies, including Coinbase, Kraken, Bitstamp, and N26, can now passport their services throughout the EU without the need for additional local approvals.

MiCA, which came into full force on December 30, 2024, is the world’s first comprehensive regulatory framework for the crypto industry. It addresses key areas such as consumer protection, licensing, disclosures, and stablecoin issuance.

Tether and Binance Missing from the Approved List

Despite the growing list of approved entities, two major players remain absent: Tether, issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin USDT, and Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by volume.

Tether has yet to obtain MiCA authorization, resulting in its delisting from several European platforms, including Coinbase and Crypto.com. Binance has also not appeared on the approved list so far, a development that highlight the challenges facing global crypto giants in adapting to the EU’s evolving compliance landscape.

Stablecoin Landscape Under MiCA

Among the licensed stablecoin issuers are:

• Circle (EURC and USDC)
• Société Générale-FORGE (EURCV and USDCV)
• Membrane Finance (EURe and eUSD)

The majority of approved stablecoins are euro-pegged, with a few linked to the U.S. dollar and one backed by the Czech koruna. Notably, no firm has yet registered to issue an asset-referenced token (ART), stablecoins backed by a basket of assets, amid high compliance costs and low market demand, according to EU regulators.

Regulatory Enforcement and Market Shifts

In addition to licensing activity, European regulators have flagged over 35 crypto companies as non-compliant service providers, with Italy’s CONSOB leading enforcement efforts.

Elsewhere, digital media platforms in Western Europe are starting to feel the ripple effects of MiCA-related compliance changes and shifts in search engine algorithms, signaling broader adaptation challenges across the crypto ecosystem.

With firms racing to meet MiCA’s disclosure and transparency standards, the next major update to the approved licensee list is expected by the end of September 2025, marking the end of the regulation’s initial nine-month transition window.