Overview
- Tests conducted by Sandmark and reported Aug. 21 found new Binance accounts in several EU countries could be created, identity-verified and funded with crypto, including an account opened on Aug. 19.
- Binance does not appear on the European Securities and Markets Authority’s register of MiCA-authorized providers and told reporters it is pursuing authorization through another EU member state.
- ESMA ordered unauthorized firms to stop onboarding EU customers and to implement wind-down plans by July 1, but a large share of preexisting providers remained unlicensed after the deadline.
- Binance restricted some country-level services after the July 1 cut-off, such as suspending trading in France, while maintaining withdrawals and saying customer assets remained supported.
- The gap between MiCA rules and on-the-ground controls could prompt more national enforcement actions like Austria’s €70,000 fine for Bitpanda and will test how regulators coordinate cross-border oversight.