Binance Keeps EU Foothold Without MiCA License Using Reverse Solicitation, Abu Dhabi Routing

Two months after the European Union's landmark crypto regulation took full effect, the world's largest digital-asset exchange is still operating inside the bloc without the license the rules require. Binance Holdings Ltd. has leaned on a pair of workarounds to keep serving European customers, according to people familiar with the matter, underscoring how difficult it has been for regulators to eject even the most prominent unlicensed firm from a market they are supposed to police.

At the center of the exchange's continued presence is the Markets in Crypto-Assets framework, or MiCA, which began applying to crypto service providers across the 27 member states on July 1. The regime allows a company licensed in one country to operate across the entire union. Binance entered July without that authorization, having withdrawn its Greek application in mid-June, and had earlier signaled it would leave the EU market. Yet the company never fully departed.

Instead, Binance has interpreted a provision known as reverse solicitation to keep onboarding new customers across the region. The clause permits unlicensed crypto firms to accept clients who approach them on their own initiative, rather than through marketing campaigns or other outreach. The exchange has taken the position that this lets it sign up users who independently seek out its platform, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the discussions are private.