Austria's Financial Market Authority fined Bitpanda €70,000 ($82,000) for breaching MiCA disclosure and marketing rules, in the regulator's first published final penalty under the EU's crypto law. The case comes weeks after MiCA's transition deadline passed, with most European crypto firms still unauthorized.
Austria's Financial Market Authority (FMA) fined Bitpanda 70,000 euros ($82,000) for violating the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation. It is the watchdog's first published final penalty under MiCA.
The FMA said Bitpanda failed to submit a crypto-asset white paper to the regulator at least 20 working days before its publication, as MiCA requires. Bitpanda also distributed a marketing communication before publishing that white paper.
FMA cites missing disclosures and contact details
A separate marketing communication omitted mandatory wording stating it had not been reviewed or approved by a competent authority, according to the regulator. The same communication also failed to state that the crypto-asset provider was solely responsible for its contents, and it lacked a required telephone number and email address.
The FMA concluded the proceedings under an expedited procedure, and the penalty decision is now final. Cointelegraph contacted Bitpanda for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Bitpanda already holds MiCA licenses elsewhere
The fine lands after Bitpanda had secured MiCA approvals in other member states. Germany's Federal Financial Supervisory Authority granted Bitpanda a MiCA license in January 2025, giving the Vienna-founded company access to the EU's passporting system, and by May 2026 it also held a Maltese MiCA license.
Enforcement follows a July deadline most firms missed
The Austrian case arrives weeks after MiCA's transition deadline expired on July 1, when firms operating under old national registrations moved into the bloc's common authorization regime. An August 11 analysis based on TRM Labs data found only 281 of 1,343 crypto service providers across the European Economic Area had secured MiCA authorization by that date, leaving 1,062 without approval.
MiCA sets a harmonized framework across the EU covering disclosure, marketing and authorization requirements for crypto companies. Austria's FMA is also reviewing new applications, including one Bitget EU filed in June to base its European operation in Vienna.
Sources: Austria's Financial Market Authority, Cointelegraph.com News, crypto.news
Trading involves risk.
Risk Disclaimer
