Key Takeaways
- Ten trade associations urge EU lawmakers to keep MiCA-authorized stablecoins eligible for settlement and collateral in tokenized markets.
- The coalition warns that proposed restrictions could effectively exclude euro stablecoins and push liquidity overseas.
- Research based on Deutsche Bank’s analysis highlights how tokenization could strengthen US capital markets and the dollar’s influence.
Europe’s crypto industry is urging lawmakers to preserve a role for regulated euro stablecoins in tokenized financial markets, warning that proposed restrictions could undermine the infrastructure the European Union wants to modernize.
Blockchain for Europe and nine other trade associations have backed an open letter addressing the Market Integration and Supervision Package (MISP).
Their demand: keep stablecoins authorized under the Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation, or MiCA, available for settlement and collateral.
Patrick Hansen amplified the appeal, describing the coalition’s position as evidence of broad industry agreement. The dispute arrives as tokenization increasingly becomes a contest over financial competitiveness and currency influence.
Industry Warns Against Rules That Exclude Euro Stablecoins
The associations oppose amendments that would exclude MiCA-authorized e-money tokens, known as EMTs, from settlement under the Central Securities Depositories Regulation, the DLT Pilot Regime and the European Market Infrastructure Regulation.
Their letter identifies a particularly consequential restriction: limiting settlement eligibility to EMTs classified as significant.
According to the associations, no euro-denominated EMT currently meets or approaches that threshold, meaning the requirement would effectively exclude euro stablecoins.
They also challenge proposals restricting settlement to prefunded accounts, arguing these would immobilize capital and prevent credit arrangements familiar in traditional markets.
The coalition supports keeping EMTs eligible alongside central bank money and tokenized commercial bank money. It also wants authorized crypto-asset service providers, or CASPs, to retain a permanent role in distributed-ledger market infrastructure.
Those demands sit within a broader legislative overhaul. On Oct. 9, the Council agreed on key elements of its negotiating position on MISP, which aims to reduce cross-border barriers and regulatory fragmentation.
Its position would broaden the activities permitted under the DLT Pilot Regime and place the most significant cross-border CASPs under direct European supervision.
The package remains subject to the legislative process; the disputed restrictions are proposals, rather than a completed prohibition.
Settlement Access and Multi-Issuance Are Central to the Fight
For the industry, authorizing a stablecoin means little if other rules prevent it from serving tokenized securities markets.
Settlement is the step that completes a trade by transferring assets and payment. Collateral eligibility determines whether an instrument can secure financial obligations. Both influence where liquidity develops.
The associations argue that EMTs can support transactions around the clock on open networks, including with international counterparties.
They present these capabilities as complementary to wholesale central bank settlement and tokenized deposits, while supporting the Eurosystem’s work.
Multi-issuance is another point of contention. The coalition seeks a framework that allows stablecoins to operate across jurisdictions without imposing requirements it considers impossible to satisfy.
It describes draft Article 48a as a constructive starting point and calls for practical equivalence assessments, predictable authorization and a clear transition for existing arrangements.
The commercial question is whether Europe’s regulated tokens can connect with global markets while meeting European safeguards.
Tokenization Raises the Stakes for Europe’s Financial Position
The attached policy note, based on Deutsche Bank research, situates that debate within a broader geopolitical context.
It describes roughly $40 billion in tokenized real-world assets against a US asset universe exceeding $100 trillion. Those figures illustrate potential scale, rather than a forecast that all those assets will move onchain.
The analysis argues that tokenization could make American investments more accessible internationally, attracting private capital and reinforcing dollar-based financial networks.
It also acknowledges a downside: easier capital mobility can accelerate outflows, making funding more sensitive to investor sentiment.
For Europe, the implication is that settlement rules could shape which currencies accompany tokenized investment.
The industry’s appeal asks lawmakers to ensure that euro stablecoins can participate as the market develops, rather than lose access due to restrictions embedded in technical legislation.
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Giuseppe Ciccomascolo began his career as an investigative journalist in Italy, where he contributed to both local and national newspapers, focusing on various financial sectors.
Upon relocating to London, he worked as an analyst for Fitch's CapitalStructure and later as a Senior Reporter for Alliance News. In 2017, Giuseppe transitioned to covering cryptocurrency-related news, producing documentaries and articles on Bitcoin and other emerging digital currencies. He also played a pivotal role in establishing the academy for a cryptocurrency exchange website. Crypto remained his primary area of interest throughout his tenure as a writer for ThirdFloor.
