EU Crypto Regulation Bars Belarusian Control of MiCA Firms

The European Union has expanded its sanctions framework against Belarus, specifically targeting the ownership and governance of crypto-asset service providers regulated under the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework. Effective August 25, 2026, Council Decision 2026/1847 and Council Regulation 2026/1846 prohibit Belarusian nationals and residents from owning, controlling, or holding governing positions in EU-based crypto firms. This measure significantly broadens previous restrictions that were limited to wallet and custody providers, now encompassing all services defined under MiCA, including trading platforms, order execution, and portfolio management. By integrating sanctions screening directly into the MiCA licensing process, the EU is imposing stricter AML and governance compliance burdens on all regulated entities. The regulation also introduces a mechanism to ban transactions with 14 third-country crypto platforms suspected of facilitating sanctions circumvention related to the war in Ukraine. This development marks a critical intersection between geopolitical sanctions and the formalization of the European digital asset market. For the RWA sector, this underscores the increasing regulatory scrutiny on the ownership structures of entities that may eventually facilitate the issuance or trading of tokenized real-world assets within the bloc.