Lagarde's EU License Block: ECB President Allegedly Intervenes in Binance Bid
Reports have emerged that ECB President Christine Lagarde personally asked Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to block Binance's EU-wide license application. This move is said to be in response to concerns over dollar-stablecoin dominance and the potential impact on the digital euro project.
Binance had applied for a MiCA authorization through Greece's HCMC, which would have allowed it to operate across all 27 EU member states. However, the exchange withdrew its application on June 24, citing the status and timeline of the Greek process rather than any external pressure.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Lagarde's intervention was motivated by Binance's 2023 US guilty plea and fears over dollar-stablecoin dominance affecting the digital euro. The ECB holds no formal power to approve or deny crypto-asset service provider licenses under MiCA, making the reported intervention a political rather than regulatory action.
The episode highlights an ongoing debate in Brussels over whether ESMA should take direct supervisory control of the largest crypto firms rather than leaving oversight fragmented across 27 national bodies. Binance remains without a valid EU license and has reportedly explored authorization through France instead.