PARIS, Jan 13 (Reuters) – Nearly a third of crypto companies without a European license in France have yet to tell the regulator whether they intend to obtain the license required by new European rules or whether they will cease operations by July, the country’s markets regulator warned on Tuesday.
Under the European Union’s crypto rules, MiCA, crypto companies must receive licenses from national regulators in order to operate across the bloc.
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These rules, a landmark regulatory package, came into effect last year to subject crypto assets to formal regulation.
Stéphane Pontoizeau, executive director of the market intermediaries and market infrastructures supervision department at the AMF, told journalists in Paris that the regulator had written to companies in November to remind them that the country’s transition period ends on June 30 next year.
Of around 90 crypto companies registered in France that are not MiCA approved, 30% have already applied for a license and 40% were not seeking one.
The remaining 30% have not informed the regulator of their plans or responded to the November letter, Pontoizeau said, adding that he was concerned about this group.
“ORDER SLOW-DOWN PLANS”
The European Securities and Markets Authority said in December that it expects crypto companies without MiCA authorization to have implemented “orderly liquidation plans” or have such plans in place by the end of the transition period, which varies between EU countries.
MiCA licenses have been granted to crypto companies including US exchange Coinbase, stablecoin issuer Circle and UK fintech Revolut.
Presenting the regulator’s plans for 2026, the President of the AMF, Marie-Anne Barbat-Layani, also reiterated France’s support for the revitalization of European capital markets and the granting of more powers to ESMA.
Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft; Editing by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes and Jan Harvey
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