“Inflows from Binance Customers Grew More Than 8 Times”: OKX Europe CEO on Post-MiCA Scene

More than a month after the EU's MiCA transition deadline, the gap between licensed and unlicensed crypto platforms is becoming stark, according to Erald Ghoos, CEO of OKX Europe. He said Binance's Android app has already disappeared from Google Play in many European markets after Binance withdrew its MiCA application in Greece and stopped onboarding new EU clients on July 1. Ghoos noted that roughly 1,100 to 1,300 firms operated under national regimes across Europe before MiCA, but only just over 300 now hold a licence.

OKX, which has held a full MiCA licence from Malta's MFSA since January 2025, said EU app downloads rose 160% in the 12 days following Binance's withdrawal — more than double the average growth across other licensed EU exchanges. The exchange also reported that inflows from Binance-linked accounts grew more than eightfold in that period and that it now accounts for about one in three app downloads among the platforms it tracks. A separate review of aggregate exchange balances found that OKX's and Binance's on-chain holdings moved in the same direction over the same two-week windows, a pattern more consistent with market-wide price swings than a one-directional exodus, leaving OKX's migration figures unconfirmed.

Stablecoin Shift Under MiCA

On stablecoins, Ghoos said Tether's USDT does not hold the e-money token authorisation required under MiCA, so it cannot be traded on OKX's European platform. OKX has directed EU customers toward USDC and built a redemption path for users still holding USDT. Dollar-denominated stablecoins, mainly USDC and USDG, absorbed most of the volume that shifted between licensed platforms, while euro-denominated stablecoins remain an earlier-stage category. Ghoos also cautioned that MiCA's reserve and redemption rules "work well at current volumes" but have not yet been stress-tested as usage grows.

Ghoos argued that MiCA has left crypto derivatives largely untouched because they fall under MiFID II, where far fewer exchanges hold the necessary permissions. OKX estimates that 95% of European crypto derivatives volume still trades on offshore, unregulated venues. To address the gap, OKX launched X-Perps, a MiFID II-regulated derivatives product offering exposure to more than 80 markets — including crypto, US equities, commodities and major ETFs — with leverage capped at 10x. Offshore venues typically offer much higher leverage, and Ghoos acknowledged that pulling volume back onshore requires both active regulatory enforcement against offshore venues and licensed platforms matching them on product range.

Ghoos said "MiCA authorisation alone is table stakes now" because a CASP licence covers spot trading and custody, while derivatives require MiFID II permissions and stablecoin and card processing require a separate Payment Institution licence. OKX holds all three. Building that stack for the first time can run into millions, with MiCA licensing alone estimated at €500,000 to €2 million and annual compliance adding €250,000 or more. Ghoos pointed to ESMA's 2018 CFD leverage-cap intervention as a historical precedent for consolidation, and noted that French and Dutch regulators have already signalled enforcement against unlicensed firms. He expects further growth from institutional capital waiting for regulatory certainty and retail users who want derivatives on the same platform they use for spot and payments, with X-Perps set to add more pairs, deeper liquidity and tighter integration with OKX's regulated product suite.