# MiCA-Licensed Firms Report Delays From EU Crypto Rules Uncertainty

By Riza Dagoc

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/regulation/27775
Published: 2026-10-08T06:20:44.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-08T06:20:44.000Z
Section: Regulation

> A survey of 17 licensed firms found unclear rules for DeFi lending, staking and asset classification are affecting product launches and investment decisions.

A survey of 17 crypto firms licensed under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation found that unclear rules are delaying product launches and shaping investment decisions as the bloc reviews its digital-asset framework.

The survey found that 71% of respondents considered rules for decentralized finance lending and borrowing unclear, while 65% said the same about staking. All respondents were customers of Fireblocks and held MiCA licenses, so the results reflect that group rather than the broader European crypto industry.

Uncertainty over whether an activity falls under MiCA or the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive affected product-launch decisions for 70% of respondents. Only 24% said the boundary was clear enough to structure products confidently.

During the previous 12 months, 35% said classification uncertainty delayed an EU product launch. Another 29% redesigned a product, 29% abandoned one and 18% launched outside the European Union. Respondents could select multiple answers.

MiCA sets EU-wide requirements for crypto-asset issuers and service providers, including authorization, consumer protection, stablecoins and market integrity. Financial instruments remain subject to existing financial-market rules.

Authorization timelines and differences among national authorities were identified as a burden by 71% of respondents, while 41% cited ongoing reporting requirements.

Operational resilience requirements also affected technology-provider decisions. Fifty-nine percent said compliance with the Digital Operational Resilience Act delayed onboarding a provider. Forty-one percent consolidated onto fewer providers, and 29% dropped or declined a provider that would not accept the required contractual terms.

A simplified authorization allowing MiCA-licensed firms to handle tokenized financial instruments under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive would encourage more investment in EU use cases, 53% said. Another 24% said the arrangement could be unfair to firms holding full licenses under that directive.

Seventy percent said resolving regulatory uncertainty would affect their EU investment or product decisions within 12 months. The figure was evenly divided between respondents expecting a material effect and those expecting a marginal effect.

The European Commission’s targeted consultation on the MiCA review ran from May 20 through Sept. 30, 2026. The review is examining how well MiCA is working as markets and policy priorities evolve following its rollout.

MiCA’s general provisions began applying Dec. 30, 2024, while rules for asset-referenced tokens and e-money tokens began applying June 30, 2024.

“This review is not a commitment to MiCA 2.0, far less a clear plan of what it will address,” said Dea Markova, policy director at Fireblocks.

No formal MiCA amendments based on the survey have been confirmed.