Circle, co-founded and led by Jeremy Allaire, made an announcement on July 1 that they have become the first issuer of stablecoins in the European Union to receive regulatory approval under the sweeping Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulatory framework. The firm’s USDC and EURC stablecoins are now compliant with the new rules, calming concerns that investors would have to redeem their stablecoins or move their funds to other digital assets to remain compliant.
Allaire also revealed that Circle has selected France as its European headquarters, citing the country’s progressive approach to digital asset regulation and the company’s collaboration with the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (ACPR).
The co-founder of Circle also highlighted the significance of the European Union’s regulatory overhaul, which marks the first comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets, showcasing the progress of the asset class since its inception.
In anticipation of the European Union’s regulatory changes, several exchanges adjusted their stablecoin policies and product offerings. In June, Uphold, a crypto exchange and custodial platform, informed its European users via email that it would be delisting six stablecoins, including Tether (USDT), Dai (DAI), TrueUSD (TUSD), Gemini dollar (GUSD), Pax dollar (USDP), and Frax Protocol (FRAX).
Bitstamp also made a similar move, delisting Tether’s EURT stablecoin in the same month, despite being one of the first exchanges to list the digital fiat token. Binance, the world’s largest centralized exchange, took a softer approach to the new stablecoin regulations by implementing a “sell-only” strategy for certain stablecoin products in the European market. The exchange clarified that it would not delist any stablecoins for its European users at that time, but would instead categorize the fiat equivalents as either compliant or non-compliant, and limit certain market features for European customers.