Dutch watchdog issues first 4 VASP licenses under MiCA

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The rush for Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) licensing is gaining momentum, with six digital asset firms obtaining the coveted license in three jurisdictions over the past ten days.

In the Netherlands, the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) issued licenses to four VASPs. The first was MoonPay, a Florida-based digital asset payments and transfer firm, which described the license as “a pivotal step in solidifying the crypto industry’s role in the global economy.”

“We are excited to deepen our collaborations with regulators, businesses, and users as we pave the way for the future of crypto,” commented CEO and Co-founder Ivan Soto-Wright.

AFM then issued the license to three other firms: Hidden Road, BitStaete, and ZBD. Hidden Road is a prime brokerage with deep ties to exchanges like Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN), OKX, and SIX, while BitStaete is a digital asset management firm based in the Eastern Netherlands. ZBD processes payments on the controversial BTC Lightning Network.

The three firms said the new license would open up new horizons and opportunities across the EU. Hidden Road CEO Michael Higgins said the license proves the firm’s commitment to “serve our counterparties across traditional and digital assets in a transparent, regulated manner.”

Hidden Road also holds a license under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), the framework previously used by European authorities to oversee digital asset firms dealing with financial instruments. It became the first firm to hold both licenses.

Elsewhere in Europe, national authorities are also picking up the pace, issuing MiCA licenses as the framework takes effect. In Ireland, the central bank issued HashKey Europe the MiCA license a week ago. The firm is the European subsidiary of the Hong Kong-based exchange.

“We are excited to establish a new presence in the EU, bringing us one step closer to aligning with MiCA regulations and advancing our mission to drive responsible innovation in the digital asset space,” commented HashKey Global managing director Ben El-Baz.

Previously, HashKey had obtained licenses in Hong Kong, Japan, Bermuda and Singapore. However, unlike in other regions where it had to acquire a separate license for each country, MiCA unifies the European region, allowing VASPs to obtain one license and passport it to the 26 other nations, serving a combined 450 million residents with a combined $19.5 trillion GDP.

In Malta, the country’s financial services regulator issued the MiCA license to Socios.com, the tokenized fan engagement platform Chilliz operates.

The license “validates our commitment to regulatory compliance and transparency in the rapidly evolving blockchain space,” stated CEO Alexandre Dreyfus.

While more VASPs continue obtaining the new MiCA license, some industry titans do not have it as easy. Tether and Binance are two of the largest digital asset firms facing a reckoning after years of operating with reckless abandon. MiCA’s stablecoin laws are especially scathing for Tether, whose USDT has seen billions of dollars in redemption in Europe.

Watch: Breaking down solutions to blockchain regulation hurdles