ESMA Adds 37 Crypto Firms to MiCA Register, Including StanChart
Europe's securities regulator updated its MiCA register for the first time since the deadline, adding 37 crypto-asset service providers.
The European Securities and Markets Authority published its first post-deadline update to the Markets in Crypto-Assets register on Thursday, adding 37 crypto-asset service providers in a significant expansion of regulated digital-asset entities operating across the European Union. The update marks a concrete enforcement milestone under MiCA, the EU's landmark crypto regulatory framework that took full effect at the close of 2024.
Among the newly listed firms are Standard Chartered, the London-headquartered global bank with deep footprints across Asia and emerging markets, and FalconX, the institutional crypto prime brokerage. Their inclusion signals that both traditional financial institutions and crypto-native intermediaries are actively pursuing regulatory clearance under the new European regime rather than exiting the market.
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The MiCA register serves as the authoritative public record of firms authorized to offer crypto-asset services within the EU's single market. Being listed grants passporting rights that allow a firm approved in one EU member state to operate across all 27 member nations, a powerful commercial incentive driving the surge of applications since the framework's deadline passed.
The addition of a major global bank like Standard Chartered underscores a broader institutional pivot toward compliance-first crypto strategies in Europe. Analysts have noted that MiCA's clear licensing pathway — contrasted with the fragmented or uncertain rules in other jurisdictions — is drawing firms that might otherwise have delayed or avoided European expansion. The 37-firm batch suggests ESMA is now processing a backlog built up around the regulatory deadline.
With dozens of firms now formally registered and more applications expected in the pipeline, Europe is positioning itself as a structured, predictable hub for institutional crypto activity. Continue reading at Cointelegraph.
