Circle and Société Générale-Forge Dominate EU Stablecoin Market Amid MiCA Compliance Challenges

Circle and Société Générale-Forge have emerged as clear beneficiaries of the regulatory landscape in the European Economic Area (EEA), where most stablecoin issuers are struggling to comply with the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation.

According to data from the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), just nine out of approximately 23 electronic money token (EMT) issuers have secured both EMT and crypto-asset services provider (CASP) authorization under MiCA.

This has left many stablecoin issuers unable to provide custody services for their tokens, significantly narrowing the range of services they can offer. Only a few players are positioned to benefit from this fragmentation, with Circle and Société Générale-Forge gaining a strategic edge over rivals in capturing institutional capital.