- Circle’s stablecoin is the first e-money token to receive a significant classification under the EU’s MiCA framework.
- The European Banking Authority assessed USDC against MiCA’s criteria, making it the first of 45 notified e-money tokens in the EU to earn the designation.
Circle’s USDC has become the first stablecoin in the European Union to be classified as a significant e-money token under MiCA. It is the EU’s comprehensive crypto asset regulatory framework. The European Banking Authority made the designation after assessing USDC against the criteria set out in the regulation. It makes it the first of 45 notified e-money tokens in the EU to receive the significant classification.
USDC is the world’s second-largest stablecoin by market capitalisation. In addition, in Europe, it is issued by Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS. In addition, the significance classification comes with a materially different supervisory structure that takes effect on November 12, 2026.
What Dual Supervision Actually Means?
From November 12, USDC moves from single national oversight to a split supervisory model involving both the EBA and France’s Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution, known as the ACPR.
The EBA takes direct oversight of own funds, reserve of assets, liquidity requirements, and recovery and redemption plans. The ACPR retains responsibility for governance, qualifying holdings, fit and proper assessments, outsourcing arrangements, and conflicts of interest.
Both authorities are expected to work closely together to ensure a smooth transition and consistent supervision going forward. This structure is precisely what MiCA Article 117 mandates for significant e-money token issuers. Once the significance threshold is crossed, the dual supervision model kicks in automatically.
The Cross-Border Dimension
USDC operates across jurisdictions. While Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS handles EU issuance, Circle Internet Financial LLC covers the United States side. To address the cross-border supervisory challenge that this creates, the EBA has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the New York State Department of Financial Services.
Also, the agreement is designed to facilitate information sharing and regulatory cooperation between the two authorities on stablecoin activity that crosses jurisdictions. That formal regulatory coordination between a European authority and a U.S. state regulator is relatively new territory. This signals how seriously both sides are treating stablecoin oversight at scale.
Furthermore, there are currently 45 e-money tokens notified under MiCA across the EU. USDC is the first to be classified as significant, but the EBA conducts annual assessments, meaning others could follow. The criteria are applied consistently, and any token that meets the significance threshold faces the same dual supervision structure.
For the stablecoin market broadly, the MiCA stops being a framework on paper and starts being a regulatory reality. Circle navigated it first, and how the EBA and ACPR handle this supervision in practice will set the template for every significant stablecoin designation that follows.
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