Acheron Trading Secures Historic MiCA License—Crypto Market Makers Enter the Regulatory Big Leagues

In a watershed moment for digital assets, Acheron Trading just became the first dedicated crypto market maker to snag an EU MiCA license—proving even DeFi’s wild west has sheriffs now.

Regulation catches up with crypto’s fastest guns

The Markets in Crypto-Assets framework finally gets its first market-making adherent, forcing liquidity providers to trade anonymity for legitimacy. Acheron’s compliance play could pressure rivals to follow suit—or risk getting locked out of the Eurozone’s $14T economy.

The real test? Surviving Brussels’ paperwork gauntlet

While TradFi veterans smirk at crypto’s ’adulting’ moment, the license grants Acheron coveted passporting rights across 27 nations. Just don’t ask about the legal fees—some things never change in finance.

Acheron Trading, a Singapore-based crypto market making firm founded in 2018, has secured a Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) license under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) from the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM), the firm said in an announcement on Tuesday.

This makes Acheron Trading the first dedicated crypto market maker to obtain a CASP license under the new MiCA regime from any European regulatory authority.

Laurent Benayoun, CEO of Acheron Trading, highlighted the strategic importance of this achievement: "Europe has seen steady crypto adoption among retail, corporate, and institutional investors, making it a strategic market for us and market makers more broadly. As the first unified regulatory framework for crypto, MiCA positions Europe as a first mover in the industry, and now Acheron is following in those footsteps."

Acheron emphasized its commitment to transparency and integrity in market making, aiming to provide liquidity while addressing unfair practices. Daniel Lo, chief legal officer, stated, "Our newly-secured CASP license is an embodiment of who we are: market makers who care about the future of the crypto industry."