Crypto glossary
MiCA passporting
MiCA passporting lets a crypto-asset service provider authorised in one EU member state offer its services in all others through a notification process.
Under MiCA, a CASP authorised by its home national authority does not need a separate licence in each country. It notifies its home regulator of the member states where it intends to operate and the services it will offer. The home authority forwards the information to the host authorities and to ESMA, and the firm can start serving clients there shortly after, either cross-border or through a branch. The same mechanism has long existed for banks and investment firms.
Passporting is the main commercial attraction of MiCA: one authorisation opens a market of around 450 million people. It has also produced debate about regulatory arbitrage, since firms can choose the home country whose supervisor seems fastest or most flexible. ESMA has carried out peer reviews of national authorisation practices to push for consistent standards.
Some obligations stay local. Host countries can apply their own consumer protection, marketing and tax rules, so a passported provider must still adapt advertising and reporting to each market.
Example
An exchange authorised as a CASP in the Netherlands notifies its regulator that it will serve clients in Spain. After the notification is passed on, it can onboard Spanish users without a separate Spanish licence.