Four Greek crypto-asset service providers — BCash, Xenios Blockchain Group, Capital Wallet Greece and Piraeus Bank — entered the European Securities and Markets Authority's (ESMA) Markets in Crypto-Assets register on Thursday. The listings mark Greece's first appearances on the EU authorization roster.

Six additional providers from Germany, France and Slovenia appeared in the same weekly refresh, lifting the cumulative count to 359 unique MiCA-authorized firms across the bloc.

Who supervises what under Greece's split MiCA framework?

The Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) is listed as the competent authority for BCash, Xenios Blockchain Group and Capital Wallet Greece. The Bank of Greece is listed as the competent authority for Piraeus Bank, a major Greek commercial lender.

The division reflects MiCA's flexibility for member states to designate more than one competent authority and split supervisory responsibilities between them — typically routing banking groups through the central bank and standalone crypto businesses through the securities regulator.

What happened with Binance's Greek application?

Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange by trading volume, was positioned to take the title of Greece's first MiCA-authorized firm. An HCMC green light would have unlocked passporting rights across all 27 EU member states under the bloc's single-rulebook framework.

The exchange withdrew its Greek application on June 24, before HCMC issued a formal decision. The withdrawal came amid a broader push by the firm to secure regulatory footholds across the EU after years of friction with national watchdogs.

Nearly three months later, on September 18, the Wall Street Journal reported that European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde had intervened to block the application after Greek officials indicated HCMC intended to approve it. The Journal cited an HCMC vice chair who allegedly told Binance that Lagarde had asked Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis not to approve the filing. HCMC initially denied the remarks attributed to its officials but did not elaborate.

How has HCMC expanded its denial?

In a written response to Cointelegraph, the regulator broadened its denial to cover the full account and dismissed any Greek government involvement in the Binance process.

"HCMC categorically rejects the assertions attributed to it," the regulator said. "No HCMC official has had any communication with any ECB official on this matter, and none of the reported statements were made by HCMC or its officials."

HCMC added that it received no communication about Binance's application from Mitsotakis, his office, the Finance Ministry or any other Greek government body. Asked whether the denial covered the reported vice chair contact with Binance, HCMC confirmed it did.

What does the dispute mean for Binance's EU strategy?

Binance declined to address the alleged intervention, telling Cointelegraph it would "not comment on speculation" while reaffirming its commitment to securing MiCA authorization in Europe. The ECB also declined to comment on the September 18 report, and a request to Mitsotakis' office went unanswered.

The exchange's path to EU passporting now depends on authorization in other member states where its applications remain pending or already cleared. Greece's first MiCA cohort — three dedicated crypto firms supervised by HCMC and one major bank overseen by the Bank of Greece — sets the template for how Athens will handle subsequent applicants as the framework matures.