Binance Eyes France After Christine Lagarde Blocks MiCA License in Greece

Crypto exchange Binance is reportedly seeking a pan-EU MiCA license in France after its application in Greece faces a major roadblock. ECB President Christine Lagarde played a key role in blocking the move to clear the path for Digital Euro.

Binance Seeks MiCA License in France After Greek Setback

According to The Big Whale report, Binance is in discussions with the AMF to secure a MiCA license in France after ECB President Christine Lagarde expressed opposition to a Greek application just before the July 1 deadline.

The crypto exchange has not yet filed a formal application, “but everything is ready.” The reasons behind this refusal are more political than regulatory.

ECB likely targeted stablecoins, with Binance as the primary liquidity channel for these assets in Europe. Cutting off its access to this market would strengthen, by constraint, the position of the future Digital Euro.

Notably, Binance has a digital asset service provider (DASP) registration with the AMF in France. This registration allows limited operations, including custody and spot trading.

🔴 Scoop @TheBigWhale_: after the Greek refusal, Binance could secure its MiCA approval in France.

The platform has not officially filed yet, but everything is ready.

This scenario follows the Greek rejection revealed yesterday by Reuters, which we are in a position to confirm.…

— Raphaël Bloch 🐳 (@Raph_Bloch) June 17, 2026

Exchange Faces License Rejection in Greece

As CoinGape reported earlier, Greece’s Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) is preparing to reject Binance’s MiCA license application. The decision, if confirmed, would prevent Binance from serving EU clients once the transitional period ends on July 1.

This presents a setback for the crypto exchange, as under the new EU rules, crypto firms have until the end of this month to obtain a license that allows them to operate in the region. Binance’s MiCA license in France could help it boost crypto adoption across the EU.

Binance applied for the MiCA license in Greece in January this year. The exchange reportedly established a local holding company in Athens, which may also have prompted the decision to apply for the license through Greece.

Binance has pushed back against the Greek application refusal. It claimed the exchange remains fully committed to securing MiCA license and operating under a unified European framework.

“We are committed to our European users and to operating under a clear, fair, and harmonised MiCA framework,” said co-CEO Richard Teng. He added, “We are dedicated to securing our MiCA licence and remain ready to operate under a fair, predictable, and genuinely harmonised European framework.”

BNB price has dropped more than 3% to $588 over the past 24 hours amid hawkish Federal Reserve tone. Total futures open interest also fell almost 4% to $873.10 million amid market selloffs.