Sin categoríaThe MiCA Regulation: Europe’s new crypto-asset rules and the end of the transitional period in Spain

Quick keys: MiCA is Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 on markets in crypto-assets; it applies directly across the entire European Union; it distinguishes between asset-referenced tokens, e-money tokens and other crypto-assets; in Spain the transitional period ended on 1 July 2026 and the CNMV supervises compliance.

For years, investing in cryptocurrency in Europe was like moving through territory without a map. The arrival of the MiCA Regulation has changed that landscape: for the first time there is a common framework for all Member States. In Spain, moreover, a key stage has just closed: the transitional period that allowed already-registered platforms to keep operating ended on 1 July 2026.

What MiCA is and why it has arrived

MiCA stands for Markets in Crypto-Assets. It is Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2023 on markets in crypto-assets. Its objective is threefold: to protect investors, to preserve financial stability and to bring legal certainty to a sector that until now lacked harmonised rules. As a regulation, it applies directly in all Union countries, without the need for national transposing legislation, although each State designates its supervisory authorities and specifies certain aspects.

Which crypto-assets it regulates

MiCA distinguishes three broad categories. First, asset-referenced tokens, known as ARTs, which seek to maintain a stable value by reference to several official currencies, commodities or other crypto-assets. Second, e-money tokens or EMTs, which are linked to the value of a single official currency, such as the euro or the dollar. And third, all other crypto-assets, a broad category that includes, for example, so-called utility tokens. Assets that are already regulated financial instruments fall outside the regulation and, with nuances, so do unique, non-fungible crypto-assets. To offer most of these crypto-assets to the public, the issuer must publish an information document, the so-called white paper, with minimum, clear and non-misleading content, and notify it to the competent authority. Asset-referenced and e-money tokens are subject to stricter requirements, which in many cases include authorisation.

Service providers and authorisation

The practical heart of MiCA is the crypto-asset service providers, identified by the acronym CASP. Under this umbrella fall exchange platforms, wallet custody and administration services, order execution, placement, advice and crypto-asset portfolio management. To operate, these entities need authorisation and must meet requirements of solvency, internal organisation, governance, management of conflicts of interest, secure custody of client funds and transparent information. The regulation also incorporates a market abuse regime prohibiting the use of inside information and price manipulation, carrying over to the crypto world principles that already govern traditional securities markets.

Spain: the end of the transitional period

Spain opted for a transitional period of eighteen months to ease the sector’s adaptation. The individuals and companies that were already entered in the Bank of Spain’s register for virtual currency exchange and wallet custody services as of 30 December 2024 were allowed to keep providing those same services without a MiCA authorisation. That margin has run out: since 1 July 2026, only providers authorised by the Spanish National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) or by another competent authority of the European Union may operate in Spain. The CNMV is the authority responsible for supervising compliance with the regulation and has published interpretative criteria to guide entities. For users, the consequence is very concrete: it is advisable to check that the platform they use is duly authorised.

MiCA and the prevention of money laundering

MiCA is not, strictly speaking, an anti-money-laundering rule, but it fits into a broader machinery. Crypto-asset service providers are obliged entities under the regulations on the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing, with duties to identify their clients, retain documentation and report suspicious transactions. To this is added the so-called travel rule, which requires crypto-asset transfers to be accompanied by information on the originator and the beneficiary, reinforcing traceability. The result is a more closely watched ecosystem, in which the absolute anonymity once attributed to cryptocurrency is increasingly difficult to sustain. For companies in the sector, complying with MiCA and with anti-money-laundering rules is no longer optional; for investors, it means a safer environment, though by no means a risk-free one.

Related: cryptocurrency fraud, money laundering defence and CEO fraud and business email compromise.