The European Central Bank (ECB) President, Christine Lagarde, intervened to oppose Binance’s attempt to secure a Europe-wide cryptocurrency licence through Greece helping derail the exchange’s expansion plans in the European Union, according to people familiar with the matter and documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
Binance had been preparing to secure a licence under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework through Greece’s Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC). The approval would potentially have allowed the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange to operate across the bloc’s market of about 450 million people.
The exchange had prepared a publicity campaign around the expected approval, with CEO, Richard Teng, planning to travel to Athens for a photo opportunity with Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Binance was also preparing to sign a lease for an Athens office, the Journal reported.
But the plans collapsed in June 2026 after Greek officials told Binance that Lagarde had intervened against the application, according to people familiar with the interactions.
The ECB does not formally approve crypto licences under MiCA. Those decisions remain with national regulators although the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) coordinates the application of the EU’s crypto rules.
The HCMC said it assessed Binance’s application ‘independently and exclusively against the applicable EU and national requirements.’ The Greek finance ministry likewise said the government had no role in the regulator’s assessment.
ESMA said it works with national authorities ‘to ensure the consistent application of the rules across the EU and to minimize the risk of regulatory arbitrage.’
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Binance’s Compliance Record
The reported intervention came against the backdrop of Binance’s legal problems in the United States.
In 2023, Binance pleaded guilty to violating U.S. anti-money-laundering and sanctions laws and agreed to pay about $4.3 billion in penalties and forfeiture. The U.S. Justice Department said Binance had failed to maintain an effective anti-money-laundering programme and had allowed transactions involving sanctioned jurisdictions and other illicit activity to pass through its platform.
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Founder, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), also pleaded guilty to violating U.S. anti-money-laundering requirements, stepped down as CEO, did jail time, and agreed to pay a $50 million fine. Binance subsequently operated under enhanced compliance and monitoring requirements as part of the U.S. resolution.
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ESMA had separately advised national regulators to take Binance’s compliance history into account when considering its European licence applications, according to the Journal.
The exchange has since sought to rebuild its regulatory position. Binance said in June 2026 that it had more than 1,500 employees working in compliance and had invested heavily in its compliance systems and controls.
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Greece Licence Bid Collapses
Binance submitted its Greek application toward the end of 2025 through a local company called Binary Greece, owned by an Abu Dhabi-based entity in which Zhao was a shareholder, according to the Journal.
The company pitched the Greek operation as an economic investment telling officials it could generate about 200 million euros ($230 million) in tax revenue and create around 100 local jobs.
Greek officials told an ESMA digital-finance committee in early June 2026 that the HCMC intended to approve the application, according to people familiar with the process.
Within a day, however, a senior HCMC official told Binance that Lagarde had asked Mitsotakis not to approve the application, the Journal reported.
According to the people familiar with the discussions, Lagarde wanted the decision delayed until European authorities could potentially take greater responsibility for crypto licensing, an approach backed by the ECB in April 2026 as a way of preventing what it called ‘risk migration into the banking system.’
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The Journal also reported that Lagarde was concerned about Binance’s potential impact on the ECB’s digital euro project.
The concern was that Binance’s scale could further entrench dollar-denominated stablecoins in Europe rather than encourage the use of euro-denominated alternatives. Dollar-based stablecoins account for more than 99% of the global stablecoin market, according to the Journal.
“I want the Euro to be fit for the future,” Lagarde told the Journal in February 2026 saying she hoped the digital Euro would form part of her legacy.
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Binance Withdraws Application
By mid-June 2026, Binance was told that the Greek licence would not proceed with officials citing a lack of ‘convergence,’ according to people familiar with the matter.
Rather than wait for a formal rejection, Binance withdrew its application on June 24 2026.
The company said at the time that it had worked with the HCMC ‘constructively and in good faith’ but decided to pursue authorization in another EU member state because no formal decision had been issued as the MiCA transition period approached its end.
Binance said it remained committed to Europe and would seek authorization elsewhere in the bloc.
The exchange had previously said that MiCA should not become ‘a process where applicants can be privately undermined through informal channels,’ according to the Journal.
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Europe Becomes a Regulatory Test for Binance
The Greek episode highlights the difficulty Binance faces in rebuilding its position in a European market that has moved toward a single regulatory framework for crypto assets.
MiCA was designed to create harmonized rules across the EU reducing the ability of crypto companies to seek out jurisdictions with lighter regulatory requirements.
Binance nevertheless entered July 2026 without a MiCA licence covering the bloc. The company subsequently notified some European customers that services would be restricted as the new regime took full effect.
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao responded to the setback on social media, writing: ‘Sad to see EU cutting their users off from the best liquidity in the world.’
Binance continues to say it intends to obtain a European authorization and operate in the region on a long-term compliant basis.
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