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A major crypto payments company MoonPay recently received regulatory approval to operate as a licensed cryptocurrency business in the Netherlands under the MiCA regulatory framework.
The firm’s license was issued by the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets yesterday, December 30, which was the same day when MiCA was issued across the EU. Thanks to this, MoonPay can continue its operations uninterrupted, acting as a provider of fiat-to-crypto and crypto-to-fiat services.Â
The company said as much itself when it noted that it would continue offering its services thanks to the new Dutch license. Meanwhile, its co-founder and CEO, Ivan Soto-Wright, stated that the approval will be a pivotal step in solidifying the crypto industry’s role in the global economy.
What Is Next For MoonPay?
This is certainly a major and important milestone for MoonPay, but also one that marked the conclusion of MiCA’s implementation phase. Now starts the 18-month transitional period, during which crypto companies that already operate under the existing laws in EU member states will be able to continue operating until July 2026, or until their licenses are reviewed and approved, whichever comes first.
MiCA was initially introduced in 2020, and it passed in 2023. Since then, the regulators in the EU have started steadily implementing rules that would help govern the digital currencies industry.
One example is the fact that stablecoins have been subject to enforcement ever since June 30 of this year, which led to changes such as removing Tether from some crypto exchanges. As for MoonPay itself, the company is reportedly negotiating the acquisition of crypto platform Helio Pay — an e-commerce platform — in a deal that is speculated to be worth around $150 million.Â
If the deal gets finalized, it will be MoonPay’s largest acquisition so far. The company has grown to be quite popular in the industry, often referred to as PayPal for crypto. It provides valuable infrastructure for digital currency payments, and it lets users buy and sell cryptos with debit and credit cards. It also supports mobile payment systems such as Google Pay and Apple Pay.
If it ends up buying Helio Pay, MoonPay’s merchant services offerings and customer base would likely see a major expansion. The firm already has over 20 million users in 160 different countries, which is a figure that could see a major increase.
