Yes. Crypto.com holds a MiCA CASP license granted by Malta's MFSA on 27 January 2025. The licensed EU entity is Foris DAX MT Limited, and the authorization appears in the ESMA register. That's the short answer. The rest of this article explains what that license actually covers, what it doesn't, and what it means if you're an EU user trading on the platform.
Crypto.com's MiCA License Details
MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, EU 2023/1114) is the EU's unified framework for crypto-asset service providers. Before MiCA, exchanges operating in Europe navigated a patchwork of national regimes. That framework replaced the patchwork with a single license that, once granted, can be passported across the entire EU and EEA.
Crypto.com operates its EU business through Foris DAX MT Limited, a Malta-incorporated entity. The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) granted Foris DAX MT Limited a MiCA Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorization on 27 January 2025. On the same day, the company surrendered its prior VFA (Virtual Financial Assets) license, transitioning fully to the MiCA framework.
The AMF (France's financial regulator) records Foris DAX MT Limited on its CASP white list, noting a MiCA license passported from Malta, effective 12 February 2025, with Malta listed as the licensing country and the MFSA as the competent authority. This is a Class 2 CASP license for a broad set of crypto-asset services. Crypto.com's authorization covers 6 of the 10 possible MiCA service categories. The missing category matters for comparison, and the next section addresses it directly.
What Services Does Crypto.com Provide Under MiCA?
Foris DAX MT Limited's MiCA authorization covers six official service categories:
Custody and administration of crypto-assets on behalf of clients
Exchange of crypto-assets for funds (crypto to fiat and back)
Exchange of crypto-assets for other crypto-assets
Execution of orders for crypto-assets on behalf of clients
Reception and transmission of orders for crypto-assets on behalf of clients
Transfer services for crypto-assets on behalf of clients
Each category describes a different part of the service. Custody applies to assets held for clients, while order services cover how the firm receives, forwards, and executes client instructions. That detail helps readers see the authorized perimeter instead of relying on a broad claim that the exchange is regulated.
These six categories cover the core of what most retail users do on Crypto.com: buy, sell, convert, and transfer crypto. In practice, this means the platform's spot trading, fiat on- and off-ramps, and asset custody services all fall within its MiCA-regulated scope.
What is absent from this list is "operating a trading platform for crypto-assets" as a standalone MiCA service category. Independent MiCA license trackers confirm that Crypto.com's EU authorization does not include this specific classification, even though the platform operates a spot market and the six listed services collectively enable trading activity. The distinction is technical and regulatory rather than functional, but it's relevant when comparing Crypto.com's license scope to peers like OKX and Gate.io.
Crypto.com vs Other Malta-Licensed Exchanges
The requested like-for-like comparison with OKX and Gate.io is omitted here because the current sourced material does not establish equivalent MiCA service categories for both firms. A service-differences table would imply a level of certainty that the available sources cannot support.
Crypto.com's own position is clear. Foris DAX MT Limited is authorized for six MiCA service categories, but operating a trading platform is not a standalone classification. The available evidence does not support conclusions about a peer's authorization. Compare the service categories listed for the legal entity, then check whether the entry has been passported to your country. That review clarifies the scope of the license without assuming that two exchanges offer the same regulated services.
Which Countries Can Crypto.com Serve?
A MiCA CASP license issued by any EU member state can be passported across the entire European Economic Area. That means Foris DAX MT Limited's Malta license allows Crypto.com to offer its authorized services in all 27 EU member states plus the wider EEA, following the required notification process. This includes Germany, France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and every other EU country. The AMF's CASP white list entry for Foris DAX MT Limited confirms that France specifically recognizes the passported license.
Passporting is one of MiCA's central features. Before it existed, an exchange wanting to operate across multiple EU countries had to register separately in each jurisdiction. Under MiCA, a single authorization from one member state is sufficient, provided the exchange notifies the relevant national regulators. The passporting scope covers only the EU/EEA bloc. It does not extend to the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Canada, the UAE, or other non-EU markets. Crypto.com holds separate registrations in those jurisdictions through different legal entities and under different regulatory frameworks.
What Crypto.com's MiCA License Means for Users
Regulatory authorization creates concrete obligations for the exchange, not just a badge on a website. Under MiCA, Foris DAX MT Limited must segregate client crypto-assets and funds from the company's own balance sheet. This is a structural protection: if the exchange faces financial difficulties, client assets should be identifiable and separate from company funds rather than pooled. EU-level governance, capital requirements, and IT-security standards also apply.
Users also gain a formal complaints channel. As an MFSA-supervised entity, Crypto.com is answerable to a named EU regulator. If something goes wrong with a MiCA-regulated service, users can escalate to the MFSA rather than relying solely on the exchange's internal process.
Here's what the license does not cover. MiCA authorization is not a deposit guarantee. It does not protect against market losses, price volatility, or investment underperformance. It does not guarantee the exchange will never be hacked. EU regulators explicitly state that even with MiCA authorization, users may incur losses with limited or no possibility of recovery in the event of disputes.
The license also doesn't change the fundamental nature of exchange custody. With crypto on Crypto.com, the exchange controls the private keys. Account holders have a claim against the platform rather than direct ownership of the underlying assets. That distinction matters for users who want full control of what they own.
Protecting Your Crypto Beyond the Exchange
A MiCA license makes Crypto.com a regulated custodian. It does not make it a self-custody solution. In a custodial arrangement, a third party holds the private keys. The exchange can provide account recovery assistance and a simpler interface, but it also creates counterparty risk: a platform hack, insolvency, regulatory freeze, or other operational failure can affect access to funds. That risk exists regardless of regulatory status.
Self-custody means the user controls the private keys directly. Transactions are signed locally and broadcast to the blockchain without the exchange's involvement. The trade-off is responsibility: losing the private key or seed phrase means there is no recovery process.
A hardware wallet generates and stores private keys offline, signs transactions internally, and never exposes the private key to an internet-connected environment. Cold storage of this kind is suited to long-term holdings, while the exchange remains the practical tool for active trading and fiat conversion.
The Tangem Wallet is one option for users who want to move assets off an exchange after trading. It's a self-custodial hardware wallet that stores private keys on an NFC-enabled card with no USB connection, battery, or Bluetooth. The private key is generated inside a Samsung S3D350A secure-element chip certified at Common Criteria EAL6+, and it never leaves the card. Tangem provides an official guide specifically for withdrawing from Crypto.com to a Tangem self-custody wallet.
Consider a 100 USDT withdrawal from Crypto.com to a Tangem Wallet. The wallet can be backed up with two or three cards, but if all backup cards are lost, Tangem cannot recover the funds. That is the tradeoff: your crypto is no longer held by the exchange, and you take responsibility for access.
The practical workflow is straightforward: trade on Crypto.com using its MiCA-regulated services, then withdraw to your own wallet for long-term storage. The exchange handles the regulated activity; the hardware wallet handles key ownership.
One limitation worth knowing: if all backup cards are lost or destroyed, recovery is impossible. Tangem cannot recover funds in that scenario. That's the tradeoff for a seedless setup.
FAQ
No. The license imposes rules on the exchange, including asset segregation and regulator supervision, but it is not a deposit guarantee. EU regulators warn that users may face losses with limited or no recovery options after a dispute or failure. The MFSA gives users a formal escalation route, not an automatic return of assets.
No. With crypto on Crypto.com, the exchange controls the private keys. MiCA sets rules for custodial services and client-asset treatment, but it does not convert an exchange account to self-custody. Direct key control begins only after you move assets to a wallet you manage yourself.
No. Crypto.com's MiCA authorization does not include "operating a trading platform for crypto-assets" as a standalone service category. Independent MiCA trackers confirm this gap. In practice, the platform functions as a spot market, but its formal MiCA classification does not include the trading platform category held by some other MFSA-licensed exchanges.
MiCA authorization means Crypto.com must segregate client assets, comply with EU governance and capital requirements, and remain answerable to the MFSA. That's a meaningful structural protection. But MiCA does not guarantee against losses, hacks, or insolvency. EU regulators make it clear that even licensed CASPs can fail and that users may incur losses with limited recovery options. Regulatory status reduces certain risks; it does not eliminate them.
The primary regulator for Crypto.com's EU operations is the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), which issued the MiCA CASP authorization to Foris DAX MT Limited. Through passporting, Crypto.com's services are also subject to oversight by national competent authorities in each EU/EEA country where it operates. The AMF in France, for example, lists Foris DAX MT Limited on its CASP white list.
Yes. Crypto.com's Malta-issued MiCA license covers all 27 EU member states and the wider EEA through passporting. Germany, France, and Spain are all within scope. The AMF's white list entry for Foris DAX MT Limited confirms France specifically. Users in these countries access Crypto.com's MiCA-regulated services through the same Foris DAX MT Limited entity.
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