Spain Regulator Rules out Extension for Non-MiCA Compliant Crypto Companies

The chair of the Spanish National Securities Market Commission reportedly said that there would be no extensions or waivers for crypto companies that did not receive approval to operate in European Union member states under the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework by July 1. 

According to a Friday Reuters report, Chair Carlos San Basilio said that “there will be no exceptions ​or extensions” to the July 1 MiCA deadline, referring to Binance and other cryptocurrency exchanges affected by the framework. Binance’s operations in the EU are expected to scale back after it withdrew its application with Greece’s Hellenic Capital Market Commission and had not received approval from any other authority as of Friday.

“What we are concerned about, however, is how this period — the end of the transitional period — will unfold, and how the adaptation to the new environment will take place; that is why ​we are in ​contact with the ⁠organisations that have not been granted a licence,” said Basilio, according to Reuters.

Should Binance fail to secure approval from a financial regulator in the next few days, the exchange will be required to halt the onboarding of new EU-based users and limit certain services for EU-based accounts starting on July 1. Other crypto exchanges have secured last-minute approvals under MiCA, but Binance, with millions of users in the EU, could have a far greater impact on the region’s crypto market.

Related: Binance’s MiCA fight raises questions over ECB influence

“This is Binance’s philosophy of doing business,” said OKX founder and CEO Mingxing Xu in response to former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao’s comments on the exchange’s EU deadline. “They ignore laws and regulations, while misleading the public with bullshits. According to public media reports and court filings, the platform’s so-called ‘best liquidity’ included trading activity associated with risks involving money laundering, sanctions violations, and market manipulation.”

Cointelegraph reached out to Binance but did not receive an immediate response.

Binance users looking to other exchanges?

With the crypto exchange expected to wind down some operations for EU-based users, some are reporting leaving Binance entirely without a definitive timeline on its return.

Some Reddit users said that they were considering Kraken for their funds. Payward, doing business as Kraken, has a Crypto Asset Service Provider license through the Central Bank of Ireland.

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