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Stand:updated on 16.04.2025 Services and activities in connection with crypto-assets in accordance with MiCAR

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Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation – MiCAR

Aktualisierungsübersicht

DatumThemaAktualisierung
10.01.2025ESA guidelines BaFin applies ESA guidelines
31.07.2024Information on applicability Publication of roadmap for MiCAR applicability from 30.06.2024
14.07.2023EBA encourages timely preparatory steps towards the application of MiCAR EBA-statement regarding preparatory steps
14.07.2023EBA consultation papersEBA Consultation papers
14.07.2023ESMA consultation papersESMA Consultation papers

Background, objectives and current status

On 20 April 2023, the European Parliament adopted Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 on Markets in Crypto-Assets (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation – MiCAR). The Council of the European Union gave its approval on 16 May 2023. The Regulation was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 9 June 2023 and entered into force on 29 June 2023.

On 24 September 2020, the European Commission had submitted the legislative proposal for MiCAR as a part of the package regarding the digitalisation of the financial sector. In addition to the MiCAR proposal, the package included the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), a proposal for a pilot regulation for market infrastructures that are based on distributed ledger technology (DLT), and a strategy for a digital financial sector.

MiCAR is aimed at creating a harmonised European regulatory framework for crypto-assets that promotes innovation and enables use of the potential offered by crypto-assets while ensuring financial stability and investor protection.

Regulatory content

MiCAR distinguishes between the activities carried out on the primary market, i.e. the issuance of crypto-assets, and the services provided on the secondary market, known as crypto asset services. In detail, MiCAR regulates transparency and disclosure requirements for the issuance and trading of crypto-assets, the authorisation requirement for and supervision of crypto asset service providers (CASPs) and issuers of crypto-assets, and the proper business organisation of crypto asset issuers and crypto asset service providers. The regulation also addresses investor and consumer protection for the issuance, trading and custody of crypto-assets and provides for the prevention of market abuse on cryptocurrency exchanges.

The various rules set out in MiCAR entered into force at different points in time:

  • Rules regarding asset-referenced tokens (ARTs) and e-money tokens (EMTs) set out in Title III and Title IV became applicable on 30 June 2024.
  • Rules regarding the authorisation and ongoing supervision of CASPs in Title V became applicable on 30 December 2024.
  • All the other provisions of MiCAR (in particular Title II and Title VI) that are not directly applicable under Article 149(4) of MiCAR also became applicable on 30 December 2024. In addition, some individual articles became applicable on 29 June 2023.

The German Cryptomarkets Supervision Act (Kryptomärkteaufsichtsgesetz – KMAG), the national law accompanying MiCAR, was published in the Federal Law Gazette on 27 December 2024.

At the same time, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and the European Banking Authority (EBA) are preparing regulatory technical standards, implementing technical standards and guidelines that will further specify the application of MiCAR.

Please be advised that fees are charged for the authorisation procedure for the provision of crypto-asset services (Article 59(1)(a) of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114) and for the notification of crypto-asset services (Article 60 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114), among other things. These fees are time-based.

Guidance on the applicability of MiCAR from 30 June 2024

Part 1: Asset-referenced tokens (ARTs) and e-money tokens (EMTs)

If you intend to issue an ART or EMT, please send us an email at art-emt@bafin.de.

Authorisation procedures under Article 16 et seq. of MiCAR and white paper assessments under Article 17(1)(a) of MiCAR are the responsibility of Division ZK 1 of BaFin’s Banking Supervision Sector (which can be contacted at art-emt@bafin.de) and the respective regional office of the Deutsche Bundesbank. To determine the regional office responsible in your case, see the notice published in the Federal Gazette of 22 March 2024 regarding special rules for the ongoing monitoring of certain companies by the regional offices of the Deutsche Bundesbank. Please send your authorisation applications to both BaFin and the Deutsche Bundesbank.

Part 2: Other crypto-assets as asset-referenced tokens (ARTs) and e-money tokens (EMTs)

Offerors of crypto-assets other than ARTs or EMTs and persons seeking admission of such crypto-assets to trading are obliged to prepare a white paper and to submit it to BaFin as the competent authority under Article 8(1) of MiCAR at least 20 working days before the publication of the crypto-asset white paper in accordance with Article 8(5) of MiCAR. Article 4 of MiCAR defines the possible exemptions. At BaFin’s request, the marketing communications under Article 8(2) must be submitted. Furthermore, the submitted white paper must be accompanied by an explanation under Article 8(4) of MiCAR as to why the crypto-asset is excluded from the scope of Article 2(4) of MiCAR and why it is not considered to be an ART or EMT. In addition, a list of all EU countries in which the crypto-asset is offered to the public or admission to trading is sought must be submitted.

Division ZK 1 in BaFin’s Banking Supervision Sector is responsible for authorisation procedures and for reviewing white papers. Please send your white paper to whitepaper@bafin.de.

Part 3: Crypto-asset service providers (CASPs)

For institutions already providing financial services in connection with crypto-assets and for companies intending to provide crypto-asset services in the future, the applicability of MiCAR has brought about several changes. In particular, it is necessary to have authorisation under MiCAR in order to provide crypto-asset services.

MiCAR provides for various potential situations as follows.

A. Institutions with authorisation for crypto custody business or other financial services with regard to crypto-assets

Institutions that hold authorisation for crypto custody business or other financial services with regard to crypto-assets on 29 December 2024 and that are not CRR credit institutions may use the simplified procedure under Article 143(6) of MiCAR in conjunction with section 50 (3) of the KMAG. For these institutions, the draft of the German Regulation on the Implementation of the Simplified Procedure under Article 143(6) of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 (Verordnung zur Durchführung des vereinfachten Verfahrens nach Artikel 143 Absatz 6 der Verordnung (EU) 2023/1114) is relevant in particular. Among other things, the German regulation sets out requirements for the content of the application and the timeline for the procedure, including the application deadlines. Until they get a MiCAR authorisation, these institutions may continue temporarily (until 31.12.2025 at the latest) to provide the services previously covered by their authorisation under the German Banking Act within the framework of a transitional regulation (31.12.2025 at the latest) on a national level.

B. Institutions already supervised by BaFin that intend to submit notifications in accordance with Article 60 of MiCAR

Institutions already supervised by BaFin that are permitted to provide crypto-asset services under Article 60 of MiCAR – i.e. CRR credit institutions, authorised central securities depositories (CSDs), investment firms, e-money institutions, UCITS management companies, alternative investment fund managers or authorised market operators of trading platforms – must notify BaFin of the information required under Article 60(7) of MiCAR at least 40 working days before providing the deadlines for the notification procedure are governed by Article 60 of MiCAR. Article 60(8) of MiCAR must be taken into account in this respect.

If you are an institution as described in Article 60(1) to (6) of MiCAR and have questions regarding the notification procedure under Article 60 of MiCAR, please contact the supervisor responsible for your institution at BaFin or at the competent regional office of the Deutsche Bundesbank. Investment firms are kindly asked to send their questions to wpi-notification@bafin.de.

If your institution intends to submit a notification under Article 60 of MiCAR, we ask that you send the template (pp. 68 – 74) together with the information required in Article 60(7) of MiCAR to casp-notification@bafin.de as well as to the regional office of the Deutsche Bundesbank responsible for your institution. To determine the regional office responsible in your case, see the notice in the Federal Gazette of 22 March 2024 regarding special rules for the ongoing monitoring of certain companies by the regional offices of the Deutsche Bundesbank. Please send your notification to both BaFin and the Deutsche Bundesbank.

C. Applicants currently engaged in an application procedure under section 32 of the German Banking Act (Kreditwesengesetz – KWG) regarding crypto-asset services

As of 30 December 2024, the provision of crypto-asset services requires authorisation under MiCAR. Applicants should therefore make the necessary changes in their organisation, processes and associated documentation at an early stage in order to meet the requirements under MiCAR. Applicants must submit an application for authorisation in accordance with Article 62 of MiCAR. It is possible to refer to information or documentation already submitted if such information or documentation is still up to date. The deadlines for the authorisation procedure are governed by Article 63 of MiCAR. The application for the current authorisation procedure under section 32 of the KWG must be withdrawn if the applicant does not intend to conduct qualified crypto custody business under section 1 (1a) sentence 2 no. 6 of the KWG. The authorisation application procedure as such carries a fee; a fee will also be charged if the application is withdrawn.

D. New applicants (companies not yet supervised by BaFin) intending to provide crypto-asset services under MiCAR

Companies intending to provide crypto-asset services under MiCAR require authorisation under Article 59(1)(a) in conjunction with Article 63 of MiCAR. Applications, Information and questions can be submitted to casp-authorisation@bafin.de.

The deadlines for the authorisation procedure are governed by Article 63 of MiCAR.

If you intend to submit an application under Article 62 of MiCAR, we ask that you send the template (pp. 105-112) together with the information required in Article 62(2) of MiCAR to casp-authorisation@bafin.de as well as to the Deutsche Bundesbank. To determine the office responsible in your case, see the notice in the Federal Gazette of 22 March 2024 regarding special rules for the ongoing monitoring of certain companies by the regional offices of the Deutsche Bundesbank. Please send your application to both BaFin and the Deutsche Bundesbank.

Furthermore, BaFin recommends keeping track of the publications of the Federal Ministry of Finance (Bundesministerium der Finanzen) in connection with the German Cryptomarkets Supervision Act (Kryptomärkteaufsichtsgesetz – KMAG) on an ongoing basis. Any related regulations will also be published on the BaFin website.

Part 3: Passporting

Notifications for cross-border crypto-asset services under Article 65 of MiCAR can be sent to passporting-notification@bafin.de.

ESA guidelines

BaFin declares the following guidelines of the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) to be directly applicable in connection with MiCAR.

ReferenceName and linkDate of application
EBA/GL/2024/06Guidelines on the minimum content of the governance arrangements for issuers of asset-referenced tokens31 January 2025
EBA/GL/2024/07Guidelines on recovery plans under Articles 46 and 55 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 31 January 2025
EBA/GL/2024/08Guidelines establishing the common reference parameters of the stress test scenarios for the liquidity stress tests referred in Article 45(4) Regulation (EU) 2023/111431 January 2025
EBA/GL/2024/09 ESMA75-453128700-10EBA and ESMA Guidelines on the suitability assessment of members of management body of issuers of asset-referenced tokens and of crypto-asset service providers, and on Joint EBA and ESMA Guidelines on the suitability assessment of
shareholders and members, whether direct or indirect, with qualifying holdings in issuers of asset-referenced tokens and in crypto-asset service providers 		04 February 2025
EBA/GL/2024/13Guidelines on redemption plans under Articles 47 and 55 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 10 February 2025

FAQs regarding MiCAR

The following questions regarding MiCAR are intended to give an initial overview of the most important issues regarding the services governed by MiCAR, without any claim to completeness.

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How are crypto-assets defined under MiCAR?

MiCAR defines crypto-assets as a digital representation of value or rights which may be transferred and stored electronically using distributed ledger technology or similar technology (point 2 of Article 3(1) of MiCAR).

Which crypto-assets do not fall under the scope of MiCAR ?

MiCAR does not apply to crypto-assets which are classified under Article 2(4) of MiCAR as follows:

  1. financial instruments as defined in point 15 of Article 4(1) of Directive 2014/65/EU (MiFID 2);
  2. electronic money (e-money) as defined in point 2 of Article 2 of Directive 2009/110/EC (EMD 2), except where they qualify as electronic money tokens under MiCAR;
  3. deposits as defined in point 3 of Article 2(1) of Directive 2014/49/EU (Deposit Guarantee Directive) of the European Parliament and of the Council;
  4. structured deposits as defined in point 43 of Article 4(1) of Directive 2014/65/EU (MiFID 2);
  5. securitisation as defined in point 1 of Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 2017/2402 (Securitisation Regulation) of the European Parliament and of the Council

Which crypto-assets are governed by MiCAR ?

MiCAR defines and provides requirements for the issuance and trading of the following crypto-assets:

How does the regulation define asset-referenced tokens (ARTs) ?

An asset-referenced token (ART) is a type of crypto asset that is not an e-money token and that purports to maintain a stable value by referencing another value or right or a combination thereof, including one or more official currencies (point 6 of Article 3(1) of MiCAR).

How are e-money tokens (EMTs) defined ?

An e-money token (EMT) is a type of crypto asset that purports to maintain a stable value by referencing the value of one official currency (point 7 of Article 3(1) of MiCAR).

Does the issuance of ARTs require authorisation under MiCAR?

For issuers of those ARTs that are not financial instruments as defined by currently applicable supervisory legislation, MiCAR stipulates authorisation requirements and ongoing issuer obligations. The offering of ARTs to the public and their admission to trading on a trading platform for crypto-assets generally requires authorisation by the supervisory authority (Article 16 in conjunction with Article 20 of MiCAR). Furthermore, the regulation stipulates that only legal entities that have a registered office in the European Union (EU) can be granted authorisation. MiCAR requires issuers to publish a white paper, which must be submitted to the supervisory authority as part of the application for authorisation. If authorisation is granted, the white paper is deemed to be approved (Article 21(1) of MiCAR).

Does MiCAR provide for any exemptions from the authorisation requirement for the issuance of ARTs?

Under Article 16, the issuance of ARTs is exempted from the authorisation requirement if:

  • over a period of 12 months, calculated at the end of each calendar day, the average outstanding amount of ARTs does not exceed EUR 5,000,000, or the equivalent amount in another currency;
  • the offer to the public of the ARTs is solely addressed to qualified investors and the ARTs can only be held by such qualified investors.

Furthermore, MiCAR provides for simplified requirements in the case of credit institutions within the meaning of point 28 of Article 3(1) of MiCAR. Notwithstanding the exemptions from the authorisation requirement, issuers of ARTs must draw up a crypto asset white paper in accordance with Article 16(2) of MiCAR and submit this white paper to the competent authority of their home Member State for approval and comply with the other requirements of the Title III. The content and form of the white paper are governed by Article 19 of MiCAR.

What are the obligations and requirements that issuers of ARTs have to fulfil under MiCAR?

MiCAR provides for a number of obligations and requirements for issuers of ARTs (Article 16 et seq. of MiCAR). In addition to various obligations regarding communication with clients, publication, marketing communications, complaint handling, disclosure, governance and business organisation, MiCAR stipulates that issuers of ARTs must hold a sufficient level of own funds, create a recovery plan and a redemption plan and hold a reserve in the amount of their commitments arising from the issuance of tokens. In addition, the Regulation stipulates how the reserve assets are to be held in custody and invested.

Does MiCAR set out any specific additional provisions for certain ARTs?

Where ARTs are classified as significant by the European Banking Authority (EBA) based on some of the criteria defined in Article 43 of MiCAR (size, volume, interconnectedness, etc.), issuers must fulfil additional obligations set out in Article 45 of MiCAR. In this case, the EBA becomes the supervisory authority responsible.

How does MiCAR regulate the issuance of EMTs?

Authorisation to issue EMTs is not granted to just anyone or any company. No EMTs are to be offered to the public in the EU or admitted to trading on a trading platform for crypto-assets unless the issuer of such EMTs

  1. is authorised as a CRR credit institution or e-money institution and
  2. has submittted a crypto-asset white paper to the competent authority and published this crypto-asset white paper in accordance with Article 51 of MiCAR.

It is thus not possible to apply for separate authorisation to issue EMTs; existing authorisation for credit institutions or e-money institutions constitutes the prerequisite for additionally issuing EMTs.

Since e-money tokens, as their name implies, are closely related to e-money, EMTs are explicitly to be regarded as e-money. In addition, EMT issuers are expected to comply to a large extent with the provisions of Directive 2009/110/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2009 on the taking up, pursuit and prudential supervision of the business of electronic money institutions amending Directives 2005/60/EC and 2006/48/EC and repealing Directive 2000/46/EC (EMD2), with only a few specific adjustments. Key aspects include the token holder’s right to the reimbursement of the EMTs at par value at any moment and compliance with the security requirements under EMD2.

Additional information

More on this topic

Warning on crypto-assets

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