Binance has withdrawn its MiCA license application in Greece and will seek authorization in another EU member state, leaving the exchange without a confirmed EU passport less than a week befo
Binance has withdrawn its MiCA license application in Greece and will seek authorization in another EU member state, leaving the exchange without a confirmed EU passport less than a week before the bloc’s July 1 deadline.
The company had pursued authorization through Greece’s Hellenic Capital Market Commission after setting up Binary Greece as its local regulatory vehicle. A Greek license would have allowed Binance to offer crypto-asset services across the EU under MiCA’s passporting system.
The withdrawal follows weeks of pressure around the Greek application, after regulators raised concerns over Binance’s compliance record, corporate structure and risk profile. Binance said it worked constructively with regulators during the process and will announce the new member state once it is ready.
The company’s position remains that Europe is part of its long-term plan. Binance had already said it would not leave the EU after the Greek MiCA setback, even as the failed route put normal bloc-wide access at risk.
MiCA’s transitional period ends on July 1, 2026. Crypto-asset service providers without authorization must stop serving EU clients unless they have another valid legal basis.
ESMA’s wind-down instructions for unauthorized crypto firms require platforms to stop onboarding new EU clients, stop marketing, avoid new account openings and limit activity to transfers, sales, position closures or other actions needed for an orderly exit. Custody can continue only for the period needed to complete that process.
Wind-down plans must keep customer due diligence, transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, suspicious activity reporting, recordkeeping and transfer-traceability controls active until the exit is complete. Firms must also tell clients how assets can be moved, what services remain available and whether open positions face closure deadlines.
That framework now applies directly to Binance’s European timeline if the exchange cannot secure another authorization route quickly. The withdrawal from Greece means Binance no longer has the licensing path it originally targeted for MiCA passporting.
Binance remains the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume, but its EU licensing effort has been shaped by past compliance and governance concerns. Regulators have examined the exchange’s anti-money-laundering record, management structure, global corporate setup and links to founder Changpeng Zhao.
The exchange has argued that it has rebuilt compliance controls and expanded its regulatory operations. Binance says it has invested heavily in systems, controls and compliance staff while working with European authorities for more than 18 months.
The EU licensing process has still become one of Binance’s hardest regulatory tests. MiCA gives approved firms a single market route across all 27 member states, but it also gives national regulators and ESMA a direct role in deciding which large global platforms meet the standard for EU-wide access.
Other exchanges have already secured approvals under MiCA. WhiteBIT EU obtained Austrian MiCA authorization, while other firms are using local licenses to preserve EU market access before the transition window closes.
Binance now has no Greek application, no announced replacement member state and only days before the July 1 MiCA cutoff. The company says it remains committed to Europe, but any normal EU service after the deadline depends on a new authorization route or a restricted wind-down path for existing clients.
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