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FMA takes over supervision of crypto-asset service providers in Austria

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The EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCAR) provides a legal basis for digital assets – the FMA’s guide provides legal clarity and a clear pathway towards authorisation

The Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) has been designated as the competent authority for providers like trading platforms, or custodians and managers of crypto-assets, and for issuers of crypto-assets by the Austrian implementing legislation transposing the European Union’s Regulation for markets in crypto-assets (MiCAR). This legal framework and the accompanying intensification of supervision have created a new comprehensive basis in the EU and in Austria for regulated business involving crypto-assets – digital representations of values or rights like the well-known digital assets Bitcoin or Ethereum, as well as other tokens based on a distributed ledger or similar technologies. Previously, such providers were already subject to AML regulation.

“The new clear rules create greater legal clarity and fair conditions for competition in the dynamic market for crypto-assets”, remarked the FMA’s Executive Directors, Helmut Ettl and Eduard Müller. “The FMA has been conferred effective powers as a supervisory authority to enforce integrity and transparency and to protect customers and market participants against fraudulent and irresponsible free loaders. This enables innovation and exploiting the potential of crypto-assets while also ensuring financial stability and investor protection.”

MiCAR specifically sets transparency and disclosure obligations for the issuance and trading in crypto-assets, the obligation for the authorisation and ongoing supervision of crypto-asset service providers (CASPs for short) and issuers of crypto-assets and their orderly business conduct, rules for investor and consumer protection and well as regulations for preventing market abuse.

Signposting for Authorisation Procedures

The material provisions for future crypto-asset service providers will apply from 30 December 2024. Authorisation procedures now form the initial focus for both the FMA and market participants. To ensure that fundamental aspects like consumer protection and financial market stability are ensured to a high degree, MiCAR imposes strict requirements on these new supervised entities. The FMA has drawn up a detailed information document intended as a guide and for signposting purposes, setting out the supervisor’s expectations and answering questions that arise in relation to the application.

The information document is based on the FMA’s past experience and observations, and is intended to provide legal certainty and clarity for parties applying for authorisation. It is intended to help avoid follow-up questions and delays in the authorisation procedure and to ensure the efficient handling of the procedure for the FMA and the applicant. In addition, the FMA’s new information series “Let’s talk about supervision” (“Reden wir über Aufsicht”) explains two material thematic issues surrounding outsourcing for CASPs. The information document and the document from “Reden wir über Aufsicht” can be downloaded (both in German only) from the FMA website.

The Austrian crypto market

According to a recently published study by the Oesterreichische Nationalbank[1] approx. 3% of the Austrian population holds crypto-assets in their portfolio, usually in amounts in the region of a few thousand euro. The most frequent motives for investment are speculation on capital gains, interest in technology, as well as portfolio diversification. Sociologically the holders of crypto-assets are predominantly young males. Currently there are two registered virtual asset service providers (VASPs) registered with the FMA under the Financial Market – Anti-Money Laundering Act (FM-GwG; Finanzmarkt-Geldwäschegesetz), and they had around 300,000 customers in Austria as of 2023. Such service providers will be captured by MiCAR under supervisory law from 30 December 2024. On the basis of their current regulatory status, they may continue to conduct their services for a transitional period until the end of 2025 at the latest, provides that they are not authorised to as a crypto-asset service provider (CASP) under MiCAR by then.

Background information

Journalists may address further enquiries to:

Boris Gröndahl (FMA Media Spokesperson)

Telephone: +43 (1) 249 59-6010

Mobile: +43 676 8824 9995

E-Mail: [email protected]


[1] Fessler, P., Weber, B. (2024). “Crypto Assets in Austria: An Assessment of their Prevalence and the Motives of their Holders”, OeNB Bulletin, June 2024. https://www.oenb.at/Publikationen/Volkswirtschaft/bulletin/2024/q2-2024/june-2024-2.html

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