ESMA Grants 14 New MiCA Licenses as Bank Adoption Deepens
ESMA added 14 crypto firms to the MiCA register in a sign of slowing licensing momentum, while continued approvals for traditional banks underscore the market's shift toward institutionalisation.
European regulators added 14 crypto-asset service providers to the interim MiCA register on Thursday, bringing the total number of licensed firms to 294. The update by the European Securities and Markets Authority marks the second expansion since the framework's transitional period ended. However, the latest batch represents a sharp deceleration from the 37 approvals granted in the initial post-deadline update on July 3.
The new entrants highlight a clear trend of traditional financial institutions securing operational footing in digital assets. Ripple Payments Europe was approved alongside a cluster of established banks, including Portugal’s Bison Bank, Croatia’s state-owned Hrvatska poštanska banka, and two German cooperative banks. Liechtenstein’s Kaiser Partner Privatbank also joined the list, which already includes heavyweights like BBVA, Commerzbank, and Standard Chartered Luxembourg.
For market professionals, this deepening bank presence signals that European crypto trading is increasingly being absorbed into regulated traditional finance. Early licensees now face direct competition from established lenders equipped with existing retail customer bases, significant balance sheets, and built-in compliance infrastructure. The slowing pace of new approvals further suggests the initial surge of willing, prepared applicants has largely been processed.
Despite the growing appetite for crypto services, the pipeline for stablecoin issuance remains effectively frozen. ESMA reported no changes to its electronic money token register, which stands at 21 unique issuers. The asset-referenced token register still lists zero approved issuers, indicating that stablecoins tied to multiple assets continue to face steep regulatory hurdles under the new regime.
Regulatory enforcement is proceeding in parallel with licensing. ESMA added two entities, Reversal Investment Group and Kortex, to its non-compliant register following interventions by Italy’s CONSOB. The total number of flagged firms has now reached 164, including the major exchange MEXC, demonstrating that authorities are actively policing the market's periphery.
