- Bitpanda secured a MiCA license from Germany’s BaFin.
- OKX and Crypto.com gain Malt accreditation under the new MiCA regulation.
Bitpanda announced on January 27, 2024, that it had obtained the Market in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license from Germany’s regulator BaFin. Rival crypto firms Crypto.com and OKX also gained accreditation in Malta, as the EU’s licensing regime standardizes crypto regulations across Europe.
MiCA is a new regulatory framework that took effect in late December 2024. The regulation allows these exchanges to operate across the European Economic Area (EEA) and within all 30 EEA nations.
These companies aim to leverage the license to enhance their growth by serving more users.
Eric Demuth, the co-founder and CEO of Bitpanda, said in a statement, “This milestone enables us to bring easy and safe investing to over 450 million people, unlocking unparalleled growth potential in a market we’re ready to fully conquer.”
See Related: Crypto.com Gets EU MiCA Approval, Eyes Growth In Europe
Concerns Over MiCA
Despite MiCA’s implementation, there are unsettling worries about the regulation’s effectiveness.
The Bitpanda CEO expressed his concerns, emphasizing that MiCA’s success and impact will mainly depend on how well authorities enforce it.
According to a statement the CEO shared, failure to enforce compliance can result in some crypto firms ignoring regulation. This would disadvantage companies that comply with MiCA’s regulations in the competitive crypto market.
