Bybit was removed from France’s AMF blacklist and now seeks a MiCA license for the EU, while still facing regulatory challenges in India and Malaysia.
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Bybit was removed from France’s Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF) blacklist, according to a company executive.
The trading platform had been on the blacklist since May 2022 for “noncompliance” with local rules. Cointelegraph has confirmed that Bybit no longer appears on AMF’s blacklist of “unauthorized companies and websites.”
Bybit no longer on AMF blacklist
A release from the AMF dated May 2024 warned the public that Bybit was a blacklisted entity. However, the release now has a disclaimer stating: “The information in this press release is no longer up to date.”
The exchange left the country recently after it told its French clients that withdrawal and custody services would be stopped from Jan. 8, citing increasing regulatory scrutiny from the local financial watchdog.
Related: Bybit to halt crypto services in France by January 2025
Bybit CEO Ben Zhou announced on Feb. 14 that the exchange has been working with the French regulator on remediation for over two years and is now seeking to obtain a Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) license for the European Union.
Source: Ben Zhou
Still, the exchange faces additional regulatory hurdles abroad. In Malaysia, the securities regulator ordered it to halt operations, while regulatory pressure pushed the exchange to suspend its services in India.
MiCA framework drives crypto exchange expansion
Like Bybit, crypto exchange Bitget expressed intentions to fall in line for a MiCA license to deepen its European expansion after obtaining a permit to offer crypto services in Bulgaria on Feb. 14, adding to its European footprint in Poland and Lithuania.
“We recently announced our pursuit of MiCA licensing and are actively progressing through the application process,” Hon Ng, chief legal officer at Bitget, told Cointelegraph, adding that the exchange expects approval in 2025.
Recently, both OKX and Crypto.com announced that they received full licenses under the bloc’s MiCA framework, permitting the offering of regulated crypto services across the EU.
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