New Binance accounts could be opened, verified, and funded from several European Union countries on August 19, seven weeks after the deadline for crypto firms to hold authorization under the bloc’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, according to tests conducted by Sandmark.
The Geneva-based publication said its editorial staff opened and verified an account using a European identity document and residential address, then deposited crypto into it. It said the account did not exist before July 1.
Further tests using connections in Austria, France, Germany, Spain, and Belgium produced similar results, both with and without virtual private networks, according to Sandmark. Fully verified accounts were opened in two countries. It said none of the tests produced a warning that Binance lacked MiCA authorization.
What Binance Said It Would Stop Doing
Binance withdrew its MiCA license application in Greece on June 24, days after reports that the Hellenic Capital Market Commission was preparing to reject it and said it would pursue authorization in another member state. The Crypto Times reported the withdrawal.
The exchange then told users across the bloc that from July 1 it would stop accepting new registrations and deposits and suspend its Earn products while keeping withdrawals open, which The Crypto Times covered at the time. Users were not required to withdraw funds by that date.
Binance Says Availability Varies
In a written response to Sandmark, Binance said it does not comment on individual users, accounts, or specific onboarding cases, and that the availability of its products and services in Europe may vary depending on the jurisdiction, transitional arrangements, the service involved, and individual user circumstances.
“Following the implementation of MiCA, we have taken steps to ensure that the availability of our products and services in Europe aligns with relevant legal and regulatory frameworks,” the exchange said. It said it remains committed to securing MiCA authorization and is actively progressing its application.
Sandmark said Binance did not explain why new accounts could still be opened and verified in its tests after July 1.
Belgian Sign-Up Routed Through Poland, Bahrain, and Georgia
A registration made from a Belgian connection took about ten minutes to become active and required a photograph of an identity card, a live face check, and questions about income, savings, and professional status, according to Sandmark.
Binance’s terms state that a Belgium-based client contracts with Binance Poland Sp. z o.o., a Polish-registered virtual asset service provider. Fund transfers are handled by BPay Global B.S.C., Binance’s Bahrain-based payments affiliate, and settle through an account at JSC Pave Bank in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Poland has no authorized providers on ESMA’s register, and neither Binance Poland nor any other Binance entity appears on it, Sandmark said.
US Access Behaves Differently
Accessing Binance from a US address redirected to Binance.US, where the platform suspended deposits and trading and permitted withdrawals only, according to Sandmark. The exchange has been restricted in the US since 2023 following regulatory action.
What ESMA Told Firms
The European Securities and Markets Authority said in a public statement on June 23 that unauthorized providers must immediately stop onboarding new EU clients, restrict services to exit actions only, and have implemented a wind-down plan by July 1. It said national regulators should verify those plans and take action against the unauthorized provision of crypto-asset services.
ESMA said in April that any entity providing crypto services to EU clients without a license would be in breach of EU law.
Sandmark noted that MiCA governs the provision of crypto services rather than whether a website can be reached from the EU and that its tests examined whether a new EU user could register, verify, and fund an account rather than the full range of services available afterwards.
Register Has Grown to 330
ESMA’s register listed 330 authorized providers as of August 20, according to Sandmark, against 1,343 firms operating across the European Economic Area before the transition closed, a figure it attributed to TRM Labs.
The Crypto Times reported the register at 294 on July 16, meaning 36 further authorizations in the five weeks since. Industry executives have separately estimated the pre-MiCA population at around 3,000 firms, a larger figure than TRM’s count and one drawn on a different basis.
Unauthorized Register Holds 166 Entries, 164 From Italy
ESMA maintains a separate register of firms flagged as providing crypto services without authorization. It held 166 entries as of August 20, of which Italy’s Consob supplied 164, with the Dutch and Slovak regulators contributing one each, Sandmark said. Binance is not among them.
Belgium’s Financial Services and Markets Authority named six firms in July as operating without MiCA authorization. Binance was not among those either.
Google restricted the Binance Android app in certain EU countries in late July, in what appeared to be enforcement of its own rules against apps from providers lacking required local authorizations, as The Crypto Times reported.
Austria Issued the First MiCA Fine on August 14
The Austrian Financial Market Authority announced its first case under MiCA on August 14, fining Vienna-based exchange Bitpanda €70,000 for failing to submit a crypto asset whitepaper at least 20 days before publication and for distributing marketing materials without a disclaimer stating the regulator had not reviewed them.
Sandmark said it put its findings to Binance and ESMA on August 19. It said ESMA’s press office confirmed receipt and asked for more time, with Sandmark agreeing to hold the question open until August 21.
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