The European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation — better known as MiCA — is now in its critical implementation phase. Designed to unify crypto regulation across all 27 EU member states, MiCA promises clarity, consumer protection and long-term market stability. But as implementation begins, cracks are already showing.

In this week’s episode of Byte-Sized Insight, we explore the key provisions of MiCA now in force, particularly around stablecoins, and why some of the largest players in the market are refusing to comply.

As of January 2025, crypto asset service providers (CASPs) began acquiring licenses to operate legally within the EU. A transitional or “grandfathering” period allows existing firms up to 18 months, depending on the member state, to comply. Still, with deadlines approaching, firms are being forced to act quickly.

Stablecoins at bay

One of MiCA’s earliest and most controversial provisions involves stablecoins. Under the law, no stablecoin can be offered to EU users unless the issuer is authorized in the EU and publishes a regulator-approved white paper.

Strict rules around asset reserves, governance, conflict of interest and marketing are also part of the package. Issuers are even banned from offering interest on tokens, removing a common incentive for adoption.

Related: Stablecoin regulation next ‘catalyst’ for crypto industry — Aptos head

The world’s most-used stablecoin — Tether’s USDt (USDT) — has already announced it won’t seek MiCA compliance, meaning exchanges may soon be forced to delist it across the EU. This has major implications for liquidity, retail access and DeFi activity in the region.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino told Cointelegraph’s Gareth Jenkinson at Token 2049:

“The reason is not, uh, fear of regulations, fear of compliance… The problem that I had with um, with MiCA is that [the] license is very dangerous when it comes to stablecoins and I believe that it’s even more dangerous for the small medium banking system in Europe.”

Compliance is key

On the flip side, other firms are leaning in. BitGo, a crypto custody firm, recently secured a MiCA-aligned license in Germany, positioning itself to serve institutional players across Europe. 

Brett Reeves, head of Go Network and European Sales at BitGo, told Cointelegraph the license is not just about compliance, but long-term strategic alignment with Europe’s evolving regulatory landscape.

“We found that both BaFin and the European regulators have been relatively straightforward to deal with. Sometimes they have difficult questions, but they’re there to make sure that our processes are in place and up to scratch.”

We also spoke with Erwin Voloder, head of policy at the European Blockchain Association, who emphasized the need for consistent national-level interpretation and better guidance from regulators to prevent fragmentation.

Listen to the full episode of Byte-Sized Insight for the complete interview on Cointelegraph’s Podcasts page, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And don’t forget to check out Cointelegraph’s full lineup of other shows! 

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Ripple’s legal chief said a US court’s rejection of a proposed XRP settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) does not pose a threat to Ripple’s win.

Judge Analisa Torres of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York rejected a joint Ripple-SEC motion seeking an indicative ruling on their proposed settlement, according to a filing on May 15.

Ripple’s chief legal officer, Stuart Alderoty, said the rejection does not reverse the company’s victory in the case. The company announced the end of the lawsuit on March 19.

Alderoty stressed that the latest court decision does not change the fact that XRP (XRP) is not a security, adding that the rejection is related to “procedural concerns with the dismissal of Ripple’s cross-appeal.”

Why did the court refuse to grant the ruling?

According to the court document, Torres denied the motion as “procedurally improper” since the SEC and Ripple failed to file the correct procedural motion to support the proposed settlement.

“By styling their motion as one for ‘settlement approval,’ the parties fail to address the heavy burden they must overcome to vacate the injunction and substantially reduce the civil penalty,” the Judge wrote.

The SEC and Ripple agreed to lower the court’s $125 million fine days before Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced the end of the case. Subsequently, Alderoty disclosed on X that the SEC will keep $50 million of the $125 million fine.

“The parties have made no effort to satisfy that burden here; their request does not even mention the Rule,” the court document stated.

Community asks for explanation

As Alderoty has not provided any details on the nature of procedural concerns by the court, but assured the public that Ripple and the SEC are “fully in agreement to resolve the case,” many in the community were unhappy with the lack of specifics from Ripple.

“First, in a recent post about this case, you said you would not be making any more X posts because the case was closed,” one XRP observer responded to Alderoty in the X thread.

“Second, I don’t think it’s enough to just say that it’s procedural. I think further explanation of what went wrong in the filing is needed,” one XRP observer wrote in an X thread,” the post continued.

Related: Ripple commits $25M to US school nonprofits

“Let’s remember that both he and Brad said the case was over, and it still isn’t; they’re cheating us a little,” another user speculated.

The news came shortly after online reports suggested that US President Donald Trump was allegedly manipulated by a Ripple-linked lobbyist into announcing the XRP token would be part of his plans for a national cryptocurrency reserve.

Many in the Bitcoin (BTC) community have been slamming Ripple for advocating for a multi-coin strategic reserve, instead of a Bitcoin-only reserve.

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Central banks are experimenting with smart contracts to implement monetary policy in tokenized environments, signaling a growing interest in integrating blockchain technology into traditional finance (TradFi).

According to a joint research study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Innovation Center and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hub Swiss Centre, smart contracts could offer central banks flexible, rapid-response tools in a tokenized financial system.

The study, dubbed Project Pine, tested a prototype “generic customizable monetary policy tokenized toolkit” for further research by central banks, according to a BIS report published May 15.

“The smart contract toolkit was fast and flexible,” the BIS wrote. “In hypothetical scenarios, the central bank was able to add and change tools instantly.”

The report emphasized that if tokenization becomes widely adopted for money and securities, smart contracts could play a central role in how monetary policy is executed.

Related: Bitcoin more of a ‘diversifier’ than safe-haven asset: Report

This marks a “first step” in highlighting the potential benefits of tokenization for central banks, according to the BIS.

The framework “speed and consistency” was “validated” within a 10-minute hypothetical scenario where central banks quickly changed collateral criteria and exchanged liquid collateral for illiquid amid falling collateral values.

The smart-contract framework also allowed central banks to deploy a new facility offering reserves and changing the interest rates on the reserves in an “immediate” implementation.

Related: Coinbase faces $400M bill after insider phishing attack

Smart contracts, tokenization may help central banks

Smart contracts and tokenization technology may help central banks’ rapid response to “extraordinary events,” the BIS report said:

“This speed, coupled with the ability to adjust any of the parameters at any time, gives central banks flexibility in responding to unforeseen events and fast-moving crises.”

While promising, the report also acknowledged that central banks will likely face infrastructure challenges, as most existing systems are not designed for these advanced use cases.

Project Pine employed Ethereum’s ERC-20 token standard combined with another standard for “access control.”

Financial institutions have increasingly embraced tokenization in recent years.

At the Consensus 2025 conference, Joseph Spiro, product director at DTCC Digital Assets, called stablecoins the “perfect” financial instrument for real-time collateral management for financial transactions such as loans or derivatives.

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