On July 1, 2026, MiCA [Markets in Crypto Assets] regulation came into full force, meaning digital asset platforms that had failed to apply for or were unable to comply with it had to halt services to European users. OKX, a US-based company that offers a MiCA-approved crypto platform in Europe, reports that in the past months, MiCA has helped boost its registered users as they migrate to approved providers.
According to OKX, since April, crypto deposits to OKX Europe from non-MiCA-licensed platforms have increased by 5.5x. At the same time, app downloads jumped by 158%.
OKX is a top five crypto exchange, according to Coinmarketcap.
The company also shared its proof of reserves report, which uses zk-STARK cryptography, which they said was indicative of the platform’s resilience:
- $23,122,555,086 combined across BTC, ETH, USDT, and USDC
- BTC: $8,625,966,590 (105% reserve ratio)
- ETH: $3,187,525,086 (103% reserve ratio)
- USDT: $9,776,273,021 (112% reserve ratio)
- USDC: $1,532,790,389 (101% reserve ratio)
Erald Ghoos, CEO at OKX Europe, says that regulatory standards like MiCA are needed to establish standards that drive user trust.
“Users no longer want to rely on promises; they want cryptographic proof. The combination of robust regulatory compliance and uninterrupted proof of reserves is expected to become the non-negotiable standard for digital asset platforms.”