The European Commission has sent a letter of formal notice to Hungary (INFR(2025)2174) for failing to fully comply with the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA, EU 2023/1114), after the Hungarian legislature adopted Act LXVII of 2025 introducing a crypto-asset exchange validation authorisation regime with criminal liability provisions not provided for under MiCA's harmonised framework. The Commission stated the measure has reportedly led several crypto-asset service providers to suspend or discontinue services in Hungary.
The amendment, effective since June 2025, requires every crypto-to-fiat and crypto-to-crypto exchange to be accompanied by a compliance certificate from a validation service provider licensed by Hungary's Supervisory Authority of Regulated Activities (SARA), with non-compliant transactions rendered legally invalid and subject to criminal penalties — up to two years' imprisonment for exchanges valued between HUF 5–50 million and up to eight years for those exceeding HUF 500 million. SARA issued its implementing decree in October, mandating HUF 80 million minimum registered capital, certified information security management systems, and HUF 250 million professional liability insurance for validators — yet the first and to date only licensed provider, Caduceus Private Limited Company, was not registered until December, nearly six months after the validation obligation took effect. Several significant providers, including a major European fintech company and a nationally founded firm, exited the Hungarian market citing regulatory burdens. The Commission separately sent formal notices to 12 member states — Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Estonia, Greece, Spain, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, and Portugal — for failing to transpose the crypto-asset tax transparency directive (EU 2023/2226).
Hungary has two months to respond — the deadline falls in early April 2026 — failing which the Commission may issue a reasoned opinion, a step that could ultimately lead to referral to the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Sources:
- https://www.wolftheiss.com/insights/commission-opens-mica-infringement-case-against-hungary-implications-for-market-participants/
- https://coingeek.com/eu-commission-turns-up-heat-on-crypto-compliance-gaps/
- https://cms-lawnow.com/en/ealerts/2026/02/european-commission-opens-infringement-proceedings-against-hungary-over-crypto-asset-validation-regime
