Binance EU License Bid Hit by ECB Intervention Rumors

Binance's bid to secure a European Union Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) license has hit a snag, raising questions about the involvement of the European Central Bank (ECB) in the process.

According to reports, ECB President Christine Lagarde signaled to Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis that Binance was not welcome in Europe. This follows a Reuters story that Greece's market regulator was set to reject Binance's MiCA application.

MiCA assigns approval of crypto-asset service provider (CASP) licenses to national competent authorities (NCAs), but lawyers told Cointelegraph that its wording does not prevent other EU institutions from communicating with those regulators during the review process.

'Nothing in the MiCA framework would prevent a third party like the ECB from offering its opinion to that national authority on Binance's application,' said David Lesperance, founder at Lesperance & Associates.