EU prepares 2027 MiCA overhaul to counter US stablecoin dominance

European diplomats expect the reopening of the MiCA file to be unavoidable as the current regime struggles to integrate foreign stablecoins. While current rules effectively mandate that issuers hold reserves in European bank deposits, this requirement has forced major exchanges—including Coinbase, Kraken, and Crypto.com—to delist non-compliant assets like USDT. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino has remained vocal in his criticism of these reserve mandates, creating a regulatory impasse that officials now aim to resolve.

The pressure for reform stems largely from the U.S. adoption of the GENIUS Act in July 2025, which provided a federal structure for stablecoin supervision that the EU now views as a competitive benchmark. Beyond stablecoin access, the upcoming review will likely broaden the regulation’s scope. The European Commission is currently conducting a targeted consultation, open until September 30, to evaluate whether the framework should encompass tokenized deposits, payment instruments, and other real-world assets that currently reside in regulatory gray zones. While 42 electronic-money-token issuers and 324 service providers have already secured authorization under the existing rules, the 2027 update is intended to balance consumer protection with the need to modernize the EU's digital asset landscape against global shifts.