MiCA shifts stablecoin access toward banks and asset servicers

After the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) licensing deadline on July 1, banks and asset servicers have moved to offer crypto services inside regulated channels. Some consumer platforms have reduced or removed support for the dollar stablecoin USDT in Europe.

On July 1, CACEIS, a unit of Crédit Agricole, launched EURXT, a euro-denominated electronic money token issued on the Ethereum blockchain. EURXT is pegged one-to-one to the euro and CACEIS says its reserves are held as cash on the balance sheet of CACEIS Bank. The token was initially available to institutional investors and corporate clients and was used to settle a subscription into a tokenized money market fund.

At the end of December 2025, DZ Bank received national authorization under MiCAR for meinKrypto, a wallet and trading service planned for integration into the VR Banking App. Individual Volksbanken and Raiffeisenbanken must notify the regulator and complete their own implementations before offering the service to customers. The initial asset list for the service includes Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and Cardano. A sector study cited by DZ Bank reported that more than one-third of cooperative banks planned to introduce the solution in the months after authorization.

The European Securities and Markets Authority updated its interim MiCA register on July 3, after many transitional arrangements for existing crypto-asset service providers expired. ESMA instructed unauthorized crypto-asset service providers to stop onboarding new EU clients, stop opening new client accounts, cease marketing and solicitation in the EU, and limit activity to steps required to sell, transfer, reallocate or close positions. Custody may be maintained only for the time strictly necessary to enable an orderly exit.

Some platforms have adjusted token coverage following those supervisory instructions. One major retail app began phasing out USDT for European users in early July, allowing purchases through July 6, stopping new USDT deposits on July 30, permitting selling or withdrawals to external wallets until August 31, and converting remaining balances to fiat after that date. Market data on July 5 showed USDT with a market value around $184.11 billion and 24-hour volume near $45.56 billion.

Firms that hold MiCA authorizations or operate inside regulated banking groups continue to have the legal ability to offer tokens and crypto services to EU customers. Firms without authorization face choices to exit the EU market, transfer client relationships to authorized providers, or wind down services in line with supervisory guidance.

Products and liquidity pools outside MiCA remain accessible through offshore venues, self-custody, or platforms that accept compliance risk. Euro-denominated electronic money tokens issued through licensed banks and asset servicers have been used in some institutional settlement and tokenized fund workflows. Dollar-denominated settlement rails continue to be available via cross-border or offshore venues.

In the weeks following the July 1 deadline, regulatory approvals and reserve arrangements have become key factors in which institutions can offer stablecoins and crypto products to customers inside the European Union.