Germany has extended its lead in European Union MiCA authorizations after six cooperative banks joined the latest register, taking the country's total number of licensed crypto asset service providers to 79.
Germany Pulls Further Ahead
The European Securities and Markets Authority updated its interim Markets in Crypto Assets register on Friday, raising the number of authorized crypto asset service providers across Europe to 331. All six newly added providers were German cooperative banks: Raiffeisenbank Aidlingen, Ihre Volksbank, VR Bank Mittelfranken Mitte, Volksbank Euskirchen, VR Bank Ried Uberwald and Volksbank Backnang.
Germany now has more than twice as many authorized CASPs as France, which ranks second with 35, while the Netherlands follows with 29. The country held the top position before the latest additions, with 57 licensed providers in late June representing about 23% of the EU total at the time. Germany has added 22 authorized providers since that snapshot, while the overall European register increased by 87.
Cooperative Banks Drive Growth
The latest six approvals add to a German licensing pool that already includes several institutions from the same cooperative banking network. Germany's cooperative banking sector has begun expanding direct access to cryptocurrencies for retail customers, with DZ Bank rolling out crypto trading through participating cooperative banks. DZ Bank received BaFin approval under MiCA in January for its meinKrypto platform, supporting Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and Cardano with Boerse Stuttgart Digital handling custody.
Through this setup, participating cooperative banks can provide crypto trading within their existing customer services instead of requiring users to open separate accounts with cryptocurrency exchanges. Germany's licensing numbers include institutions whose permitted crypto activities differ by authorization and business model, meaning the CASP total does not show how many providers offer the same set of services.
Why Germany Leads
BaFin told media in June that the country's high number of MiCA authorizations partly stems from the size of its financial sector and the number of credit institutions eligible to provide crypto services. Germany had classified crypto custody as a regulated financial service before MiCA became fully applicable, leaving the regulator with an existing supervisory framework for companies moving into the European regime. Providers that operated under Germany's national licensing framework could use simplified procedures when seeking EU authorization.
MiCA introduced a common authorization system for crypto service providers across EU member states. Once approved by a national competent authority, a CASP can use passporting rights to provide covered services in other parts of the bloc. The regulation entered full application at the end of 2024, with transitional arrangements expiring on July 1, 2026.
EU Register Continues Expanding
The CASP register has climbed steadily since late June. Authorized providers increased from 244 on June 29 to 309 by July 23 before reaching 331 in the latest update. ESMA's other registers remained unchanged: the asset referenced token register stayed empty, the electronic money token register held 43 entries, and the non-compliant entity list stayed at 167.
Regulatory work has moved into supervision of already-licensed companies, with ESMA launching a review of MiCA authorized crypto custodians covering operational resilience, custody controls, key management, incident response procedures and risks involving third-party service providers.
