ESMA gives crypto firms 3 months to exit non-compliant stablecoins

The European Securities and Markets Authority has advised crypto-asset service providers authorised under MiCA to stop providing services related to stablecoins that are not compliant with the MiCA framework. ESMA asked national regulators to require firms to eliminate remaining client exposures to such non-compliant stablecoins as quickly as possible and no later than January 8, 2027. The guidance applies across a broad range of MiCA-regulated services, including trading and exchange operations, order execution, custody, transfer services, investment advice and portfolio management. ESMA instructed firms to adopt technical, contractual and organisational controls designed to prevent EU clients from acquiring or increasing exposure to unauthorised stablecoins. Regulators retain discretion to allow narrowly tailored, temporary services that help clients exit existing positions — such as liquidation, conversion, withdrawal, transfers or safekeeping — but ESMA stressed these activities must be closely supervised and time-limited. The authority framed those exceptions as transitional measures rather than permanent permissions. This update expands on ESMA’s earlier guidance from January 2025, which had already recommended restrictions on trading and exchange services involving non-compliant stablecoins. The latest wording tightens expectations for comprehensive remediation and provides a specific deadline for national authorities to verify that exposures have been addressed.