83% of Europe’s crypto firms still lack MiCA licenses as the July 1 deadline approaches

The EU’s MiCA transitional period ends on July 1, 2026, and the numbers are plain enough: out of 1,200+ crypto firms that previously held national VASP registrations across the bloc, only about 210 have converted to full CASP licenses. For PSPs, acquirers, and banks that touch crypto clients, that is the kind of cutoff that turns “pending” into “not authorized” very quickly.

1. MiCA, the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation, creates a single licensing regime for crypto exchanges, custodians, brokers, portfolio managers, and lending platforms serving EU clients. Before MiCA, firms worked under a patchwork of national registration rules; a VASP registered in one member state faced different requirements than one registered elsewhere. MiCA replaces that with one authorization and EU-wide passporting rights.
2. The transitional period started with the December 2024 application date and runs for 18 months under Article 143. That window closes on July 1, 2026. The source says there is no intermediate status after that date: a firm is either authorized under MiCA or it is in breach of EU law. A pending application does not give a company the right to keep serving EU clients.
3. Of the 1,200+ firms that previously held national VASP registrations, only approximately 210 have converted to full CASP licensing under MiCA, a conversion rate of roughly 17%. The remaining 83% either missed the window, are still mid-process without legal standing to continue operating, or have quietly exited.
4. Firms that secured CASP licenses from national competent authorities in France, Germany, Luxembourg, Ireland, or the Netherlands can passport services across all 27 member states. Firms that did not secure that authorization are required to stop. For payment providers, that changes the counterparty question from “is this client growing?” to “is this client legally allowed to keep processing EU traffic?”
5. The framework covers governance, custody standards, conflicts of interest, prudential safeguards, client asset protection, disclosure obligations, market abuse rules, and complaints handling. For stablecoin issuers, MiCA’s earlier June 2024 phase already set the tone; for the rest of the market, July 1 is the real line in the sand.