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Binance seeks new European licenses after MiCA setback, CEO says
Binance withdrew a Greece MiCA licensing bid on June 24, after it said regulators delayed approval and raised concerns about users facing a very short transition period.
Binance is exploring new licensing paths in Europe after a setback tied to the EU's MiCA framework, according to co-CEO Richard Teng, who spoke at the Reuters NEXT Asia conference in Singapore. Cointelegraph reports regulators have invited Binance to apply for crypto licenses, though Teng said the discussions are still premature and he did not name the jurisdictions.
MiCA created a single licensing regime for crypto firms across the European Union. After the EU transition period ended on July 1, the European Securities and Markets Authority said crypto firms must serve EU clients through a MiCA-authorized entity, with limited exceptions for unsolicited cross-border business.
Binance withdrew its MiCA application in Greece on June 24, after reports said Greek regulators were preparing to reject the bid. Teng said regulators told Binance its submission was fully compliant, but approval kept being delayed, and Binance withdrew the application so users would not have faced a very short transition period.
Teng also argued MiCA may not be meeting its consumer protection goals as many European users chose self-custody. He said 70% of EU users' withdrawn funds went to self-hosted wallets and 30% flowed to MiCA-regulated entities, and Cointelegraph added that Binance recorded $1.23 billion in net outflows during the week beginning June 29, up 207% from about $400 million the prior week, based on DefiLlama data reviewed by Cointelegraph.