Summary
The article discusses the introduction of new regulations under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) in the European Union. MiCA focuses on utility tokens and excludes DeFi protocols, NFTs, CBDCs, security tokens, and other financial instruments. The regulation introduces licensing requirements for crypto-asset service providers, asset-referenced token issuers, and electronic money token issuers. Competent authorities will be responsible for overseeing and monitoring these service providers, with significant CASPs being monitored by both competent authorities and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), which has the power to restrict or prohibit crypto-asset services in certain circumstances.
Key Points
1. Utility tokens are crypto-assets that provide access to a specific good or service offered by the issuer.
2. The Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) does not cover decentralized finance protocols (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), security tokens, or other crypto-assets classified as financial instruments under MiFID II.
3. MiCA introduces licensing requirements for crypto-asset service providers (CASP), issuers of asset-referenced tokens, and issuers of electronic money tokens. CASPs must obtain a license unless they are already licensed as a credit institution under MiFID. Additionally, CASPs with over 10 million active users will be considered “Significant CASPs” and will be subject to monitoring by competent authorities and potential intervention by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) to protect market integrity, investor protection, and financial stability.