Skip to main content
Uruguay Can

News from across crypto

ESMA sets three-month deadline for non-MiCA stablecoin holdings

ESMA says EU regulators should require crypto firms to wind down exposure to non-compliant stablecoins within three months, while allowing limited steps to protect clients.

Uruguay Can Editorial

ESMA sets three-month deadline for non-MiCA stablecoin holdings

ESMA has set a three-month deadline for EU regulators to address crypto platforms’ remaining client exposure to stablecoins that do not meet MiCA rules. In an Oct. 8 statement, the European Securities and Markets Authority said authorised crypto-asset service providers should stop offering services related to those tokens in the EU. ESMA’s opinion gives national regulators a common approach to supervise that change.

Which stablecoins and services are covered?

The opinion covers asset-referenced tokens and e-money tokens that do not meet MiCA’s requirements for a lawful public offer or trading admission in the EU. ESMA says the restriction applies across crypto services, not only exchange listings: it includes trading, execution and exchange, as well as transfers, custody, advice and portfolio management.

That scope matters because access can continue even after a token disappears from a trading page. ESMA says authorised providers should not maintain, introduce or facilitate EU clients’ access to these tokens, including by letting clients acquire more or increase existing positions. It also says warnings and disclosures alone do not address the risks created by missing issuer safeguards.

What happens to tokens clients already hold?

Existing holdings can be handled through a limited wind-down. ESMA’s opinion to national regulators says any remaining services should be restricted to steps needed to avoid client harm:

  1. Sell or convert the holdings.
  2. Withdraw or transfer them.
  3. Safekeep them during the wind-down.

Those services must be time-limited and closely supervised, and must not enable new purchases or continued trading.

When does the three-month period end?

Where regulators identify remaining exposure, ESMA says they should require remediation as soon as possible and no later than three months after the opinion’s publication on Oct. 8, 2026. That sets Jan. 8, 2027, as the outer date for the remediation period. The opinion is addressed primarily to national regulators, which will assess authorised providers in their jurisdictions and oversee the transition.

Sources