MiCA Stablecoins: 25 E-Money Token Issuers, No Asset-Referenced Tokens

MiCA's stablecoin rules have applied since 30 June 2024. On 22 Oct 2026, ESMA's register listed 50 e-money token (EMT) white-paper entries from 25 issuers, and 0 asset-referenced token (ART) issuers: the ART file is empty (EMTWP.csv, ARTZZ.csv).

Who Can Issue an E-Money Token

Only credit institutions and electronic money institutions may offer e-money tokens to the public, and they must notify a white paper to their authority (Articles 48 and 51 of MiCA). The register shows 44 entries from e-money institutions and 5 from credit institutions. ESMA warns that white papers in its register “have not been reviewed or approved by any competent authority” (ESMA).

What This Means for Exchange Users

A stablecoin that would qualify as an EMT or an ART, but whose issuer is not authorised in the EU, is a “non-MiCA compliant” token. ESMA asked national authorities to make exchanges comply “as soon as possible and no later than the end of Q1 2025” (ESMA, 17 January 2025):

• Exchanges operating a trading platform were expected to stop making such tokens available for trading.
• Order transmission, order execution and crypto-to-crypto or crypto-to-cash exchange services were also to stop where they amount to an offer to the public.
• Restrictions on existing services were to be completed by the end of January 2025. A “sell only” service could run until the end of Q1 2025 so that EU clients could liquidate or convert their holdings.

Holding such a token is not prohibited. ESMA says “mere custody and transfer of these crypto-assets should remain possible”, but warns that the restrictions “can lead to worse execution conditions for investors maintaining holdings” (ESMA). Whether a token's issuer has notified a white paper can be checked in the issuer list on the stablecoins page.

What the File Does Not Tell You

• The file has no token-name column, only the issuer, a white-paper link and Digital Token Identifiers. We do not add token tickers that the file does not state.
• 3 entries are marked as exempt under Article 48(4) and/or 48(5) of MiCA in the ESMA file.

The issuer list is on the stablecoins page.