TL;DR:
- Binance is set to lose its license to operate in the European Union starting in July after its MiCA license application in Greece faces imminent rejection.
- The Hellenic Capital Market Commission is about to deny the authorization that would allow the exchange to operate across all 27 countries in the bloc.
- Binance says it has met all requirements and that the Greek regulator has not issued any formal indication of non-compliance to date.
Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange with 300 million users, is on the verge of losing its authorization to operate in the European Union. According to two sources familiar with the matter who spoke to Reuters, the license application filed with Greece’s Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) is close to being rejected. Without that permit, the exchange would be barred from providing services to clients in the bloc starting in July 2026.
The license in question falls under the MiCA regulatory framework —Markets in Crypto-Assets—, the European Union’s new regime requiring companies in the sector to obtain authorization in one member state for it to serve as a passport across all 27 countries in the bloc. The deadline expires at the end of June. Binance chose Greece as its European regulatory base, a decision that co-CEO Richard Teng publicly backed in February, arguing that the country’s labor and security profile gave it an edge over other financial hubs.
Binance remains committed to its European users and will continue to operate in compliance with applicable law.
— Binance (@binance) June 16, 2026
Binance Says It Was Not Properly Notified
A spokesperson for the exchange stated that the company has spent 18 months working with regulators and believes it met all the requirements to obtain MiCA authorization. The spokesperson also noted that the company understood the HCMC had concluded its review with a favorable outcome. “The HCMC has given no formal indication to the contrary,” the spokesperson told Reuters. The Greek regulatory body, for its part, declined to comment, citing confidentiality rules.
Following the publication of Reuters’ report, Binance issued a statement announcing it would seek to “support an orderly process and minimize disruptions for its users,” without providing further details. The company also warned that delays in the MiCA authorization process risk pushing activity outside the territory of the European Union and pledged an update before June 30, 2026.
A potential rejection would leave the exchange’s European clients in an uncertain situation and would mark a turning point in the relationship between the largest crypto asset exchange and the bloc’s regulators, who have for years sought to establish formal oversight over a market that moves trillions of dollars.
