Which exchanges you may still legally use in Europe

Something changed this summer that attracted very little noise but has more consequence for the average European crypto investor than any price move. On 1 July 2026 the last MiCA transitional period expired. Since then there is no exemption left: anyone offering crypto-asset services in the European Union needs an authorisation. Full stop.

What exactly changed

MiCA entered into force back in late 2024, but member states were allowed to grant existing providers a run-up period — so-called grandfathering. In practice that meant you could keep operating on your old national registration while your application was being assessed. That period has now ended, and no extension is coming.

For firms that did not make it, this is not a formality. Remaining active without an authorisation from a competent authority can attract fines of up to 15 million euro or 12.5 percent of annual revenue, whichever is higher. For most platforms the second threshold bites hardest.

309 authorisations, and that says less than you think

ESMA's public CASP register stood at 309 authorised providers on 24 July 2026, spread across 30 EU and EEA markets and issued by 26 national supervisors. In early July the figure was still around 280, so the counter is very much still running.

That number suggests plenty of choice, but it is misleading. MiCA distinguishes ten separate crypto-asset services, and most authorisation holders are not trading venues at all. They are custodians, brokers, payment providers, advisers and order executors. Of the 309, only about fourteen are genuine trading platforms where a retail investor places their own orders.

The trading platforms that hold an authorisation

The familiar names that did make it: Coinbase and Bitstamp obtained their authorisation in Luxembourg, Kraken in Ireland, Bitvavo in the Netherlands. Malta hosts OKX, Crypto.com and Gate.io EU. Bitpanda holds a dual authorisation in Germany and Austria. Bybit EU and WhiteBIT EU operate from Austria, eToro and Revolut from Cyprus. One Trading and Bullish EU complete the list.

One important detail: thanks to passporting, a platform authorised in one member state may serve clients across the entire Union. A Polish or Greek investor can therefore legally trade at a platform authorised in Ireland or Germany — the authorisation follows the firm, not the customer.

Who is missing

Binance, by far the largest exchange in the world, does not appear in the register. It withdrew its Greek application and has served no EU clients since 1 July, though it still says publicly that it intends to obtain an authorisation. Gemini left the European market in April 2026. KuCoin was barred by the Austrian supervisor in February 2026. MEXC holds no authorisation anywhere in the Union.

Anyone still trading at such a platform sits outside the European protection framework. No mandatory segregation of client funds, no complaints procedure through a European supervisor, no liability rules if custodied assets are lost.

Germany 63, Poland zero

The distribution across Europe is strikingly uneven. Germany leads with 63 authorised providers, followed by France with 31 and the Netherlands with 29. Cyprus and Malta both sit at 22. At the other end of the spectrum: Greece, Hungary, Poland and Romania have issued no authorisations at all so far.

That says more about the capacity and processing times of national supervisors than about market size. Poland has a large and active crypto community, but its implementing legislation arrived late and the KNF only recently began assessing files.

What it means for you

Practically: check whether the platform you use appears in the ESMA register, and under which supervisor. The register is public and free to consult. If your platform is absent yet still actively courts European customers, that is at minimum a reason to reconsider your position.

For the vast majority of users in the Netherlands and Belgium, little changes in practice — Bitvavo, Kraken, Coinbase, Bitpanda and eToro are all authorised. The problem sits mainly with those who moved to a platform outside the Union in recent years because it was cheaper or less restrictive there. That route has become considerably less comfortable in legal terms.

Sources: ESMA CASP register, CASP Tracker (24 July 2026), Elvinger Hoss, Spaziocrypto. Last checked: 25 July 2026.