Circle
Circle is a US - contrast fintech-infrastructure provider (Crypto / digital-asset infra). Verified at source - licence, regulator and registry reference. EURC/USDC issued in EEA via French entity (US parent, CLOUD Act)
Who it's for
Circle is built for products adding regulated crypto capabilities - custody, exchange or stablecoins - under MiCA. It operates with a full banking licence - deposit-guaranteed accounts and credit products are on the table.
Sovereignty profile
- Data residency (EEA): Partial - partly in the EEA - check the rail
- Company origin: US (US)
What Circle does
Capabilities & rails
- ⚖ MiCA: EMT (euro stablecoin)
Verified licence profile
Circle (US) - issuer of the USDC and EURC stablecoins; EU-issued USDC/EURC via Circle France (ACPR EMI), reserves held in EU credit institutions per MiCA Art. 36. US parent = CLOUD Act exposure.
Verified 2026-06-26. How we verify → · Spotted something out of date? Report a correction. · Are you Circle? Work with us →
Official register entries
- MiCA CASP - Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF) · LEI 969500OYUDADGZKCR583 · Active (ESMA MiCA register, as of 2026-07-18)
Register-sourced. See the full European Fintech Index. Registers have no legal significance - always confirm current status with the home regulator.
Known to power
- ClearBank (runs-on) — Offers Circle EURC/USDC stablecoins to institutional clients (Apr 2026)
European alternatives to Circle
21X AG (DE) - operator of a regulated on-chain exchange & settlement system for tokenized securities. BaFin-authorised under the EU DLT Pilot Regime (DLT-TSS, 2025) - not MiCA (financial instruments). Sovereignty-relevant tokenized-markets infra.
AllUnity (DE) - JV of DWS, Flow Traders and Galaxy Digital (Deutsche Bank group). Issues EURAU, Germanys first regulated euro stablecoin. EMI authorised by BaFin (2025).
Bank Frick (Liechtenstein; family-owned, founded 1998) - banking and acquiring for PSPs and fintechs; the only Liechtenstein bank with both Visa and Mastercard acquiring licences, and the first EU bank in blockchain banking (2018). First Liechtenstein entry in the catalogue.
🏦 Local IBANs: GB DE LU
Banking Circle S.A. (Luxembourg) - cross-border banking, accounts, payments and settlement for banks, PSPs and fintechs; issues the EURI euro stablecoin. Credit institution, CSSF (LUB00000408); not the unrelated 'Circle Group S.A.'.
Bitpanda (Vienna) - MiCA CASP via FMA Austria (+ dual rail CSSF Luxembourg). B2B arm Bitpanda Technology Solutions = white-label investing/crypto infrastructure for banks.
Bitpanda Technology Solutions (Vienna, Austria) - B2B white-label investing + digital-asset infrastructure (stocks, ETFs, crypto, custody, tokenization) for banks/fintechs. Relies on Bitpanda VASP (Austria FMA + AMF), MiFID II investment-firm, PSD2 and MiCA (BaFin) authorisations. Client: N26.
FAQ
Is Circle European / EEA-based?
Partly. Circle is US origin (US); part of its rail or data sits outside the EEA - check the licence profile.
What does Circle do?
Circle covers: Crypto / digital-asset infra. Verified at source by Fintechnologica.