Services Directive and the Crypto-Asset Regulation

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has published a no-action letter regarding the alignment between the Payment Services Directive (PSD2/3) and the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), hereinafter referred to as “the letter,” in English.

The letter assesses, among other things, the provisions set out in MiCA and PSD2 and advises that transfers involving crypto-assets be considered payment services when they involve electronic money tokens (EMTs) and are carried out on behalf of clients. Additionally, it sets out provisions to regard the custody and management of EMTs as a payment service. A custody wallet, moreover, should be regarded as a payment account if it is in the name of one or more clients and can be used to send and receive EMTs to and from third parties. Exchange services, i.e. the exchange of crypto-assets for funds or other crypto-assets, are not considered to involve payment services.

The EBA’s letter recommends that a PSD2 authorisation should not be required for entities offering the above-mentioned EMT-related services before 2 March 2026, but only from that date onward. During the authorisation process, such entities will be subject to certain simplified procedures. The aim is to make maximum use of the information that legal entities have already submitted during the CASP (Crypto-Asset Service Provider) authorisation process. The EBA recommends, however, that crypto-asset service providers should not be required to obtain a PSD2 authorisation at all when they intermediate the purchase of any crypto-assets with EMTs.

The simplified procedures outlined in the EBA’s letter for complying with PSD2 requirements apply only to transactions involving EMTs. Therefore, the guidance does not apply to traditional payment service providers that handle assets other than EMTs. These other assets include, for example, account-based monetary value and conventional electronic money. Thus, the letter does not apply to crypto-asset service providers that offer ancillary but traditional payment services. Such entities already require separate authorisations to offer payment services (under PSD2) and crypto-asset services (under MiCA).

The purpose of the EBA’s letter is to clarify and avoid future overlaps between the Payment Services Directive and the Crypto-Asset Regulation, and to reduce the resulting regulatory burden.

The Financial Supervisory Authority will follow the recommendations provided in the EBA’s letter.

For further Information, please contact

• Tytti Tanninen (Crypto-assets), Senior Supervisor, telephone +358 9 183 5533 or tytti.tanninen(at)fiva.fi
• Emilia Isolauri (Payment Services), Senior Supervisor, telephone +358 9 183  or emilia.isolauri(at)fiva.fi

Appendix

EBA’s letter on the alignment of the Payment Services Directive and the Crypto-Asset Regulation