BitGo offers Europe’s crypto firms a MiCA-compliance lifeline as license deadline looms
CoinDesk 2026-06-17 06:34:55
Context: As the deadline looms for crypto companies to obtain licenses in Europe under the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regime, BitGo, a BaFin-regulated firm, is offering its Crypto-as-a-Service platform to help eligible crypto players across Europe navigate MiCA compliance. The final deadline for crypto firms to transition to the MiCA regime is the end of June 2026. BitGo's platform provides an alternative way for firms to comply with MiCA without building a standalone regulated crypto operating stack from scratch.
Key Facts
- BitGo's Crypto-as-a-Service platform allows eligible crypto firms to onboard their clients to MiCA-compliant sub-accounts inside of BitGo, provided that certain know-your-customer (KYC) work aligned with MiCA has been done.
- The final deadline for crypto firms to have transitioned to the MiCA regime is the end of June 2026, a regulatory reckoning that will force some firms to close down their businesses.
- Industry estimates suggest that Europe had more than 3,000 registered crypto firms as of 2024, with Poland alone accounting for over 1,400 registrations, and as of May 2026, there are 194 authorised CASPs, with around 75% of the pre-MiCA population expected to lose registration status.
- BitGo CEO Mike Belshi stated that firms don't need to go bust because of MiCA's regulatory requirements, and regulators are aware of BitGo's compliance-enhancing infrastructure offering, with fees for the crypto compliance service being relatively cheap and varying product by product.
- Eligible businesses may also continue to evaluate or pursue their own MiCA-focused crypto asset service provider (CASP) licenses in parallel while integrating BitGo Europe's infrastructure.