Germany Widens Lead in MiCA Licenses with Addition of Six Cooperative Banks

Germany has extended its lead in the number of institutions licensed under the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation, or MiCA. The country now holds a total of 79 licenses for crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), surpassing France and the Netherlands.

The update was made by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) to its register, which lists a total of 331 CASPs, 43 e-money tokens (EMTs), and 167 non-compliant entities. Six German cooperative banks were granted MiCA licenses: Raiffeisenbank Aidlingen, Ihre Volksbank, VR-Bank Mittelfranken Mitte, Volksbank Euskirchen, VR Bank Lahn-Dill-Oberwald, and Volksbank Backnang.

The number of licensed CASPs in Germany has increased by 22 in just two months, from 57 at the end of June. BaFin attributed this growth to the size of Germany's financial sector and the number of credit institutions able to offer crypto-asset services. The regulator noted that Germany had established a domestic licensing framework before the transition to MiCA, allowing some firms to receive approval through a simplified process.