MiCA in the Netherlands: one authorisation for the EU

The Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) replaced the national patchwork with one European rulebook: a crypto-asset service provider (CASP) authorised in one Member State passports across the EU. In the Netherlands the Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) grants that authorisation, with De Nederlandsche Bank involved on the prudential side.

For exchanges, custodians, brokers and wallet providers from outside the EU, the question has shifted from whether to license to where — and the Dutch combination of an experienced supervisor, an English-language process and the continent's payments infrastructure keeps pulling applications to Amsterdam.

What MiCA authorisation covers

The CASP authorisation spans the crypto service landscape: custody and administration, operation of a trading platform, exchange of crypto-assets for funds or other crypto-assets, execution and reception of orders, placing, advice and portfolio management. Own-funds requirements scale with the services provided, governance and fit-and-proper standards mirror the wider financial framework, and the whitepaper and market-abuse rules apply across the Union.

Why the Netherlands for a CASP

The AFM built its crypto experience early and runs the process in English. The surrounding infrastructure is the same one that carries Dutch payments: banking partners who understand regulated fintech, auditors and compliance specialists in working supply, and talent from the sector's European leaders. For groups combining payments and crypto, the payment institution licence from DNB and the CASP authorisation from the AFM sit naturally in parallel Dutch entities under one holding: the payments route.

The entity comes first

The application opens with ownership, governance and substance — qualifying holdings documented, directors prepared for assessment, genuine establishment in the Netherlands, and Wwft anti-money-laundering arrangements designed in. We build that BV and the holding above it; the authorisation file itself runs with specialised regulatory counsel, coordinated entirely in writing.

Setting up in the Netherlands

A Dutch BV is incorporated by notarial deed and registered with the Chamber of Commerce (KvK); incorporation runs remotely by power of attorney. Holdwise builds the entity and the group structure — ownership chain, substance, governance documentation — and the licence application itself runs with specialised regulatory counsel, coordinated in writing. The wider route: EU market entry.

Frequently asked questions

What is a CASP under MiCA?

A crypto-asset service provider — the authorisation category covering custody, trading platforms, exchange, order execution, placing, advice and portfolio management in crypto-assets. One authorisation passports across the EU.

Who grants MiCA authorisation in the Netherlands?

The Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) is the Dutch licensing authority for CASPs, with De Nederlandsche Bank involved on the prudential side.

Can payments and crypto run under one Dutch structure?

Yes — the standard model holds the DNB payment licence and the AFM crypto authorisation in parallel BVs under one Dutch holding, with the participation exemption carrying profits within the group.

What does Holdwise do in the process?

Holdwise builds the entity and the structure — the BV, the holding, ownership documentation and substance. The authorisation application runs with specialised regulatory counsel, coordinated in writing.