European Crypto Users Trust Regulated Platforms More Under MiCA: Bitpanda CEO

European crypto users are placing greater trust in regulated platforms following the rollout of the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets framework (MiCA), according to Christian Trummer, co-CEO of Austrian crypto exchange Bitpanda. Speaking on Cointelegraph's Chain Reaction podcast, Trummer said most European users have "more faith" in licensed market participants, contrasting this trend with a self-custody-focused "Crypto Twitter bubble" that he argued represents a minority view. Most retail and institutional users, he noted, prefer the convenience and compliance assurances of regulated providers over managing their own private keys.

Trummer also used the appearance to call for stricter enforcement of MiCA, warning that some firms continue serving European customers without holding the required authorization. He described this as a competitive disadvantage for compliant companies, noting that unauthorized players gain market share by avoiding the costs and obligations of licensing. "The problem there definitely is that it's not strictly enforced by the regulators, because there are still other players on the market which offer the service to European customers and they don't comply to the MiCA license," Trummer said.

MiCA's grandfathering period for existing crypto service providers expired no later than July 1, 2026, with the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) instructing national regulators to take action against firms that continued operating without proper authorization. ESMA has since pushed for stronger supervisory powers to address unauthorized crypto services and third-country firms soliciting EU investors without MiCA compliance. The framework is also under review, with Circle recently urging the EU to revise stablecoin reserve rules as part of ongoing regulatory refinements.