European regulators are examining how Binance continues to serve customers in the European Union months after the exchange failed to secure a license under the bloc's Markets in Crypto Assets regime, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) together with national watchdogs in France, Germany and Greece is scrutinizing Binance's reliance on the reverse solicitation exemption contained in Article 61 of MiCA. That provision permits a firm outside the bloc to serve EU clients only where the service is provided at the client's "own exclusive initiative." Some regulators have already requested information from the company, and according to the report, they could move to enforcement — including fines — if the answers prove unsatisfactory.

The timeline is unambiguous. Unlicensed firms were required under MiCA to begin winding down their EU operations from July 1, retaining only the ability to serve existing customers as they moved or sold their holdings. Binance missed that licensing window this summer.

ESMA's guidelines on the exemption leave little room for maneuver. The authority states the test should be construed narrowly, that whether a client was solicited is a question of fact, and that "contractual arrangements or disclaimers cannot supersede contrary facts." ESMA told the Financial Times the exemption is very narrowly framed and should "not be used to circumvent MiCA requirements." The Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) said firms "cannot simply claim reverse solicitation," adding that clear requirements and guidelines must be met. The French, German and Greek regulators declined to comment, as did ESMA and the AFM when asked about Binance specifically.

The operational picture behind the regulatory question is fragmentary but consequential. In practice, customers located outside the countries where Binance held local registrations are now served by an entity regulated in Abu Dhabi, where the exchange received authorization in December 2025, according to one user and two people familiar with the arrangement. Binance previously held registrations in six member states — France, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Spain and Sweden — all of which have lapsed under MiCA's transitional framework.

Binance said it "complies with applicable regulatory requirements" wherever it operates and that it keeps its products under review against relevant obligations. The company added that it is "actively working toward becoming MiCA-authorised."

The path to that authorization has already proved rocky. Binance withdrew its MiCA application in Greece in June, one week after Reuters reported the Hellenic Capital Market Commission was preparing to reject it. At the time, the exchange said it would pursue authorization in another member state while taking the steps needed to remain compliant ahead of the July deadline, and warned that some users might be affected.

No grace period was on offer. Days before the July 1 cutoff, the chairman of Spain's securities regulator, the CNMV, ruled out exceptions or extensions and said supervisors were in contact with unlicensed firms to ensure they had plans to transfer client assets elsewhere.

The business consequences of an adverse finding would be significant. A determination that reverse solicitation does not cover Binance's continued EU-facing activity would expose the exchange to fines from national authorities and force a structural acceleration of its wind-down obligations, cutting off the Abu Dhabi entity's ability to lawfully onboard or serve EU-based clients in the interim. Binance's pivot to an alternative member-state application also carries risk, since approval timelines under MiCA run from twelve months in most jurisdictions and hinge on the applicant's home-authority assessment.

Binance is not the only firm under the microscope. Regulators are also examining other, smaller firms over similar reliance on the exemption, one person told the Financial Times — a signal that supervisors view the post-July 1 period as an active enforcement window rather than a settled transition.

With information requests already issued and fines on the table, the coming months will show whether ESMA and its national counterparts treat Article 61 as a genuine carve-out or as the next front in MiCA enforcement.