Binance says MiCA should be judged by who it licenses, not who it excludes

The head of crypto exchange Binance's Europe division said the success of the European Unions Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation should be measured by how many firms it brings into the regulatory system, not simply by having a rulebook.

The world's largest crypto exchange withdrew its MiCA license application in Greece last week after months of discussions with regulators, forcing it to notify affected users less than 10 days before the July 1 deadline, instead of the 30 days they internally contemplate. Binance told its clients, via an email to users in several EU countries, that it would suspend some services and would no longer accept new registrations until further notice.

Although Binance still believes MiCA can become the global standard for crypto, Gillian Lynch, Binance's head of Europe and the U.K. in an interview said the regime's success should be measured by how many firms it brings inside the regulated market.

“Is the success of MiCA that we have regulation, or is the success that the players are regulated？” Lynch said.

Despite the Greek withdrawal, she said she supports MiCA remaining a system in which national regulators grant licenses, while the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) plays a larger supervisory role over the largest firms. Binance is not the only crypto exchange suspending crypto services by July 1.

ESMA privately advised national regulators to disapprove Binances MiCA applications, highlighting issues the exchange has meeting compliance with financial-crime rules, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the discussions.

Lynch said the WSJs reporting “mischaracterises how these accounts were identified, reviewed and acted upon. With regards to the cases raised in recent reporting, as soon as Binance uncovered these complex patterns of activity, it offboarded all accounts involved in those transactions and reported them to law enforcement. This is the complete picture that the headlines omitted.”

Lynch disputed the report, saying it “mischaracterises how these accounts were identified, reviewed and acted upon.” She also said the accounts referenced were offboarded and reported to law enforcement as soon as Binance identified the activity, adding that “this is the complete picture that the headlines omitted.”

She also rejected suggestions that Binance ignored sanctions concerns or retaliated against compliance staff, calling such allegations “categorically false.” Binance previously sued the WSJ over reporting on these Iran-linked accounts from earlier in the year.

BinanceMiCARegulation

Latest Crypto News

• 1

  Finally. $221 million flow into Bitcoin ETFs, ending a painful 10-day outflow streak

  49 minutes ago

• 2

  XRP bulls test path back toward $1.10 as token zips 4% higher

  1 hour ago

• 3

  Ether and solana extend gains as a short squeeze lifts bitcoin toward $62,000

  1 hour ago

• 4

  Securitize tokenizes $295 million of its own stock on Solana and Avalanche amid NYSE debut

  11 hours ago

• 5

  EToro invests in onchain derivatives platform Extended as brokers race into DeFi

  13 hours ago

• 6

  Bitwise says STRC selloff signals crypto cycle nearing a bottom, not Strategys breaking point

  13 hours ago

• 7

  US Treasury sanctions over 100 ISIS-K crypto addresses that moved over $1.4 million

  15 hours ago

• 8

  SBI Crypto to shut down mining pool that holds roughly 2% of Bitcoin's hashrate

  15 hours ago

• 9

  Ondo Finance debuts SEC-aligned tokenized stock model with BlackRock ETF, Micron shares

  16 hours ago

• 10

  JPMorgan says Strategy's bitcoin sales policy adds 'two-way risk' to crypto markets

  17 hours ago

Latest Research

Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness



Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness

Zcashs Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.

By CoinDesk Research

Jun 30, 2026

Commissioned byGenZcash

Zcashs Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.

Why it matters:

Zcashs Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold.

View Full Report

More From Policy



US Treasury sanctions over 100 ISIS-K crypto addresses that moved over $1.4 million



Three years after MiCA became law, Europe's crypto framework is undergoing a rethink



ChatGPT developer OpenAI said to discuss offering U.S. government a 5% stake: FT