Stablecoin firm ZeroHash has obtained a license under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), becoming one of the first infrastructure providers authorized to offer stablecoin services across the EU.
ZeroHash Europe announced Sunday that it received approval from the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM), enabling it to provide stablecoin and crypto products to banks, fintech firms, and payment platforms across the 30 countries of the European Economic Area (EEA). The AFM’s official registry confirms ZeroHash’s status as a registered crypto-asset service provider (CASP).
The approval positions ZeroHash Europe as a key infrastructure player for institutions exploring tokenized assets, stablecoins, and other blockchain-based financial products under the EU’s new regulatory framework.
ZeroHash wins EU license as Mastercard reportedly pursues $2B acquisition
Founded in 2017, ZeroHash provides crypto infrastructure solutions to major clients such as Morgan Stanley, Franklin Templeton, and Stripe. Its recent MiCA license approval comes amid reports that Mastercard is in advanced talks to acquire the company for between $1.5 billion and $2 billion, according to Fortune, which cited anonymous sources familiar with the matter.
The potential acquisition aligns with Mastercard’s broader push into the stablecoin sector.
In August, Mastercard announced plans to enable acquirers and merchants in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EEMEA) to settle transactions using Circle’s USDC and Euro Coin, with Arab Financial Services and Eazy Financial Services among the first adopters. This marked the first stablecoin settlement service available through Mastercard in the EEMEA region.
A month later, Kazakhstan’s central bank partnered with Mastercard and Solana on a stablecoin pilot project tied to the country’s fiat currency.
Launched on Sept. 23 under the Digital Assets Regulatory Sandbox, the Evo (KZTE) stablecoin—pegged to the Kazakhstani tenge—is issued by Intebix Crypto Exchange in collaboration with Eurasian Bank.
