MiCA 2.0 Consultation Opens as Kraken’s $415M Spot Book Tops Licensed EU Venues

Kraken now holds 1,704 markets, roughly $415 million in spot liquidity and near $228 million in perpetual futures liquidity, according to a dashboard tracking MiCA-authorized exchanges that went live July 2. Coinbase trails with about $171 million in spot liquidity, and Crypto.com sits near $131 million. The numbers, current as of July 9, are the clearest picture yet of how licensed liquidity is stratifying under Europe’s crypto framework.

That data emerges just as the European Commission moves to reopen MiCA only one week after the regime became fully applicable across the bloc. A consultation draft is now circulating with an expanded scope targeting non-EU crypto issuers and tokenized payment instruments, and Brussels is collecting stakeholder feedback until September 30. A formal legislative proposal is expected in 2027.

Why Brussels is moving again

The current framework does not specifically capture non-EU entities issuing crypto assets while active in the European market — a gap regulators flag as material for stablecoins whose issuance is often split across multiple jurisdictions. The Commission is separately reviewing whether MiCA should extend to tokenized bank deposits and other tokenized payment instruments, a segment officials expect to expand quickly.

The scale behind that concern is sizable: global stablecoin transaction volume climbed 72% in 2025 to approximately $33 trillion, a figure now approaching mainstream payment-rail territory. Roughly 95% of stablecoin supply remains dollar-pegged, a dominance the GENIUS Act reinforced after taking effect in the US in 2025 and extending federal backing to dollar-denominated tokens — a dynamic European policymakers are watching for its monetary-influence implications inside the bloc.

This regulatory reset lands against a risk-off tape: the Fear and Greed Index reads 22/100, Bitcoin dominance sits at 69.7%, and total crypto market capitalization is near $1.80 trillion.

Licensing is already sorting winners from laggards

MiCA’s full rollout has already reshuffled EU market structure. USDT was delisted from several EU exchanges over compliance concerns, and a number of global platforms trimmed regional operations rather than clear the new licensing bar.

Binance missed MiCA authorization by the end of June and suspended part of its EU services, though it has stated intent to reapply through another member state. bitFlyer moved in the opposite direction, securing approval to operate across all 27 EU countries off a single license — effectively a passport model other exchanges have yet to match.

Enforcement is tightening in parallel. ESMA has launched its first joint supervisory action on crypto custody since the transition period lapsed, with audit records showing more than 80% of previously registered custody providers still lacked full authorization once the grace period expired.

For desks tracking EU market access, the liquidity data already shows a widening split between authorized venues capturing deep spot books and platforms still stuck in licensing friction. The 2027 review looks set to formalize that divide rather than resolve it anytime soon.

Read more: Sony Bank Clears OCC Hurdle, Adds Fresh Issuer Supply to $250B Stablecoin Race

Sources

• coinotag.com