Banks are steadily gaining ground in the European Union's regulated crypto market, according to registry data from the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). The number of credit institutions listed as crypto-asset service providers under the Markets in Crypto-Assets law (MiCA) roughly doubled in about three months, climbing from around 40 on 26 June to about 80 on 16 September.
The shift comes as the overall registry expanded sharply, growing from 243 to 349 registered crypto-asset service providers, or CASPs, over the same period. But the composition of that growth favoured banks. The share of non-bank companies in the registry fell from approximately 84% to 77%, while the share held by banks rose from 17% to almost 23%.
A structural feature, not a coincidence
The difference in growth rates reflects how MiCA treats banks differently from other market participants. Under the regulation, non-bank providers must apply for authorisation as a CASP, a process that typically involves a fuller supervisory review. Credit institutions, by contrast, can offer certain crypto services simply by notifying their national supervisory authority.
Article 60 of MiCA sets out the mechanics of that route, requiring credit institutions to submit the required information at least 40 business days before they start providing crypto services. The lighter procedural burden gives banks a faster path into the registry than newly authorised non-bank firms face.
Germany leads the trend
Germany stands out in the data, with its portion of the registry including major commercial banks alongside numerous cooperative entities tied to networks such as Volksbank, Raiffeisenbank and VR Bank. The presence of these cooperative banking groups points to a broad-based push among German lenders, not limited to the largest institutions, to secure a footing in crypto services under the new EU framework.
Among larger banks, Deutsche Bank has proposed offering digital asset custody services for institutional and corporate clients in Europe, an indication that interest extends beyond retail-facing crypto products into services aimed at professional counterparties.
What the numbers mean for the market
The registry figures illustrate how MiCA's dual-track authorisation system is reshaping the structure of the EU's regulated crypto sector barely a year after the framework's rollout. Banks entering through notification are adding to the pool of licensed providers at a faster clip than non-bank firms working through full authorisation, a dynamic that is steadily lifting the share of the market held by traditional credit institutions.
For an EU audience watching how crypto services integrate with the existing financial sector, the trend suggests that banks, rather than crypto-native firms, are increasingly setting the pace of registration under the bloc's new rules.
