Binance Abandons EU Customers Amid MiCA Licence Fiasco

Binance, the world's largest digital-asset exchange, will stop providing services to European Union clients from July 1 due to its failure to secure a licence under the bloc's new MiCA crypto rules. The company withdrew its application in Greece on June 24 after regulators raised concerns about Binance's past anti-money-laundering record and corporate structure.

MiCA, the EU's new crypto rulebook, requires crypto-asset service providers to have authorisation in at least one EU member state to serve customers across the bloc. Once licensed in one country, they can provide passport services across the EU. Binance had been trying to use Greece as its base but was unable to secure a licence.

Binance's head of Europe and the UK, Gillian Lynch, said that the company is not leaving Europe and may have a different pathway to being authorised. However, rivals such as Coinbase, Kraken, OKX, and Bitpanda have already secured MiCA authorisations, giving users regulated alternatives.

The lack of a MiCA licence means Binance must scale back its services to EU customers. Users may see limits on trading, new products, registrations, or certain account functions. Binance is contacting affected users directly with instructions and has emphasized that customer funds remain safe and accessible.