July 1, 2026 MiCA Deadline Ends as ESMA Orders Unlicensed Crypto Firms to Wind Down EU Activity

The Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) transition period ended on July 1, 2026, and ESMA said unauthorized crypto service providers must take “immediate” steps to wind down EU activity.

“Table of Contents July 1, 2026 MiCA compliance deadline eliminates unlicensed crypto providers from EU territories”

Blockonomi

As the deadline closed, Gate Europe entered a post-deadline period with a MiCA CASP license and a Payment Institution license, and the approvals were described as giving the company a regulated structure for crypto services and payment activity.

Blockonomi

The final wave of authorizations before the cutoff included Italy approving Hodlie, Young Platform, CryptoSmart and Hercle to raise Italy’s authorized CASPs to eight, and France adding Mereau Finance, Iceblock and Aplo to bring France’s licensed CASPs to 31.

ESMA’s interim register showed 244 authorized CASPs across the EU and EEA by Friday, while Binance remained unlicensed under MiCA and later withdrew its Greek application.

In parallel, ESMA warned that after the deadline any entity providing crypto-asset-related services to EU clients without a MiCA license will breach EU law and must stop offering these services.

Binance’s MiCA licensing path became a focal point as Cryptopolitan reported that on June 24 Binance withdrew its MiCA license application from the Greek regulator, the Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC), and planned to file in another EU member state.

In a post on X, Binance CEO Richard Teng told European X users, “We remain committed to obtaining the MiCA license in the coming months, providing clarity, minimizing disruption, and keeping users informed directly.”

bloomingbit

While Binance faced uncertainty tied to Greece, Ripple reported it received a preliminary CASP authorization in Luxembourg via a “Green Light Letter” from the CSSF, and the license was described as covering all 30 countries of the European Economic Area once final conditions are met.

Ripple also said the approval came before the transition deadline of 1 July, and the company positioned its existing Electronic Money Institution authorization in the same jurisdiction as part of its route to full MiCA compliance.

The same MiCA deadline pressure that pushed Binance to re-route also appeared in ESMA’s guidance that protections provided by MiCA apply only to the specific EU-authorised legal entity, not automatically to other group companies or non-EU entities operating under the same brand.

ESMA’s enforcement posture after July 1 emphasized orderly wind-down planning, saying unauthorised CASPs must have “orderly wind-down plans ready to be implemented” if they do not obtain authorization before the end of the transition period in their Member State.

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CoinDesk

Those wind-down plans were required to enable firms to withdraw without unduly prejudicing clients, including transferring crypto-assets held on behalf of clients to an authorised CASP or to a self-hosted wallet, and existing clients must be notified in advance.

The stakes for firms and users were also reflected in the way ESMA framed the limits of MiCA coverage, warning that protections provided by MiCA apply only to the specific EU-authorised legal entity and do not automatically extend to other group companies or non-EU entities.

Meanwhile, Paperjam reported that Luxembourg currently has five authorised CASPs, and it cited ESMA’s register as listing 191 CASPs as of 24 April with Germany as the main destination with 55 registrations, followed by the Netherlands with 25 registrations and France with 13 registrations.

For authorized providers, the transition shifted from a one-time approval process to ongoing supervisory expectations, with Gate Europe described as facing ongoing supervision rather than a one-time approval process and needing to maintain asset protection, reporting systems, governance controls, and complaint handling.