Gemini and Coinbase, two of the biggest names in crypto, are close to getting licensed under the EU’s new MiCA rules. With that single approval, they’d be able to operate across all 27 EU countries.
MiCA officially kicked in earlier this year and is the EU’s boldest step yet in bringing crypto assets under a single regulatory roof. It gives national regulators the power to issue licenses that allow firms to operate across the entire bloc.
But as Gemini and Coinbase prepare to clear the final hurdles, not everyone’s aligned on how these approvals are being handed out.
Behind closed doors, some regulators are raising red flags. According to two people briefed on internal discussions, there’s growing discomfort over uneven standards and variable speeds in how licenses are being granted across jurisdictions.
One country at the center of that conversation is Malta.
Sources say that Gemini, the exchange founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, is on the verge of getting its MiCA license from Malta. That same country has already greenlit Crypto.com and OKX within just weeks of MiCA going live, raising questions about whether some jurisdictions are prioritizing speed over scrutiny.
For regulators tasked with safeguarding a multi-trillion-dollar digital asset market, this isn’t a small concern. MiCA was built to create a level playing field across Europe, clear rules, strong disclosures, and tighter controls.
But if firms can choose the path of least resistance to get licensed, the very foundation of MiCA risks getting diluted before it fully takes shape.
For both exchanges, getting licensed under MiCA isn’t just a checkbox; it’s a strategic move. Once approved, they’ll be able to legally offer trading, custody, and token services throughout the entire EU.
And yet, for all the progress, the EU still has to grapple with the one thing MiCA alone can’t fix, coordination. Fast-tracking approvals in one country while others take their time risks creating loopholes and regulatory shopping. And in crypto, loopholes rarely end well.
And in crypto, loopholes rarely end well.
The next few months will reveal whether MiCA’s promise of unified, transparent regulation holds firm or whether ambition gets compromised by uneven execution.
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