Europe’s crypto market is entering a crucial phase, and the latest developments are hard to ignore.
As the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation kicks in, several exchanges (including "Crypto.com" and Binance) have begun delisting non-compliant stablecoins like USDT. The goal? Align with new regulatory standards designed to “protect consumers.” But is this truly what’s happening?
Tether, the issuer of USDT, the most liquid and widely used stablecoin in the world, is being pushed out of the European market not because it failed the real-world test, but because it doesn’t check every regulatory box.
Let’s pause here:
Are EU consumers better protected by being denied access to the most battle-tested stablecoin out there?
Tether’s track record is hard to dispute. During the Terra-LUNA implosion, when trust in stablecoins was hanging by a thread, USDT processed redemptions at record speed, ten billion of dollars, without losing its peg or halting redemptions. That’s what resilience looks like in the real world, not on a regulatory form.
Meanwhile, regulators assure us this is all for the consumer's benefit. But here’s the uncomfortable truth:
ESMA's interpretation of MiCA's provisions are hard to reconcile with one another and fail to advance MiCA's objective of legal certainty. ESMA had to clarify that custody and transfers of non-compliant stablecoins are not actually prohibited. So what exactly are we protecting people from? Liquidity?
We also can’t ignore the elephant in the room: reverse solicitation. Will access to USDT still be possible through indirect paths? Are regulators solving problems, or just displacing them?
And at the heart of this debate lies a deeper question: What do you trust more?
A provider that has proven its ability to withstand massive real-world shocks, or one that gets a gold star from the regulator for ticking boxes?
This is more than just a compliance debate. It’s about what kind of crypto market Europe wants to build: one driven by checklists or by actual performance and user needs.
We’re curious to hear your thoughts: Should Tether be pushed out of the EU?
Is ESMA interpreting MiCA to protect EU consumers or to hamper the development of crypto in Europe while accumulating more power?
Let us know in the comments 👇