ECB President Christine Lagarde intervened to block Binance’s EU MiCA license: WSJ

The Wall Street Journal reported that European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde personally pushed Greek authorities to delay approval of Binance’s application for a Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license, citing concerns about the exchange’s potential to expand use of dollar-pegged stablecoins. Binance withdrew its Greek application in mid-June and says it still intends to seek MiCA authorization elsewhere in the EU.

By AI Newsroom· Reviewed by Pranav, Founder & Editor-in-ChiefPublished about 1 hour agoUpdated about 1 hour ago0 views

ECB President Christine Lagarde intervened to block Binance’s EU MiCA license: WSJ

Why It Matters

If true, the intervention shows the ECB exerting informal influence over national MiCA licensing decisions because of worries about stablecoins and the digital euro, highlighting tensions between national supervisors, EU agencies and central banks as crypto regulation is implemented.

Key Facts

Source: Wall Street Journal (people familiar with the process)
Alleged intervenor: ECB President Christine Lagarde
Target firm: Binance
Regulatory framework: EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) rules
National authority involved: Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC)

The Wall Street Journal reported that European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde personally sought to delay Greek approval of Binance’s application for a Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license. According to people cited by the Journal, Lagarde was concerned that Binance’s scale could accelerate the use of dollar-denominated stablecoins in the euro area and potentially undermine the development of a digital euro and euro-based alternatives.

The report says a senior Greek regulator told Binance the ECB wanted the decision deferred until the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) assumes licensing responsibility under a proposed EU reform that has not yet been adopted. Under MiCA as currently designed, national regulators grant approvals that allow a firm to operate across the European Union; the ECB does not have formal licensing authority for crypto-asset service providers.

Binance withdrew its Greek application in mid-June and began winding down operations there after the Hellenic Capital Market Commission decided not to approve the request at the last minute. Binance has maintained that its application was complete; Gillian Lynch, head of Binance Europe, told CoinDesk in July that nothing material was outstanding. A Binance spokesperson told reporters the company remains committed to seeking MiCA authorization and would not comment on speculation about the reported intervention.

The Journal also reported that ESMA privately advised national regulators to reject Binance’s MiCA applications because of past compliance concerns. The report references the company’s prior U.S. legal issues: founder Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty in 2023 to violating the Bank Secrecy Act, agreed to pay $4.3 billion in fines, served a four-month prison term in 2024, and was pardoned in October 2025. An ECB spokesperson told CoinDesk the institution has no official role in authorizing crypto-asset service providers and declined to comment on the Journal’s reporting.