The French Financial Market Authority has proposed a “fast track” option to assist current providers of digital asset services to smoothly transition to the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulatory framework. MiCA officially gained approval from the European Parliament on April 20th and is now awaiting approval from the European Council in July before it is fully adopted as regulation. This regulation is set to come into effect from the start of 2025 and will be a consistent regulatory framework for crypto assets across all EU member states.

In France, crypto firms have two licensing options, with one being less demanding than the other. The stricter option has a range of controls in place, such as anti-money laundering regulations, custody of customer assets, and risk and conflict of interest disclosures, as a way to further protect consumers. All 60 registered crypto firms in France currently abide by the relaxed regulations, but from 2024 onwards, new regulations must follow the MiCA format.

The AMF’s fast track option provides a solution to ease the transition of existing firms over to the MiCA arrangement. It focuses on aspects such as fund provision regulations and conflict of interest policies, as well as defining documents that will be needed to prove compliance under both the AMF and MiCA regulations. To be compliant, companies must obtain the necessary authorisation for their services to ensure the safety and security measures are in place for their clients and the company itself.

Once the fast track option has been completed, those firms will only be able to offer services in France until the MiCA regulation has officially come into effect, but after that point, those same firms can benefit from the European “passport” and provide services to all EU countries. This opens up new opportunities while also allowing firms to further strengthen their arrangements with regards to safety and security.



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