On March 2, 2026, the EBA transition period ends. After that date, no crypto exchange or OTC desk without a payment institution license can send USDT, USDC, or any other stablecoin off-platform. To any wallet. Stablecoins stay locked inside the platform. We explain what's changing, what penalties apply, and why Wanda Exchange is moving out of Poland.

Not because someone wanted it — but because the European Banking Authority (EBA) decided so, and Poland failed to prepare for it in time.

Why is the ban total?

The European Banking Authority issued Opinion EBA/Op/2025/08 in June 2025, followed by a supplementary opinion on supervisory priorities on February 12, 2026, as the transition period came to an end. These documents fundamentally change the rules of the game.

The core point is simple: stablecoins like USDT and USDC are not just crypto-assets — they are simultaneously electronic money. Article 48(2) of the MiCA Regulation explicitly states that e-money tokens (EMTs) are recognized as electronic money under the Payment Services Directive (PSD2). They have a dual nature — a crypto-asset under MiCA and "funds" under PSD2 at the same time.

And here's the key point:

Every transfer of a stablecoin from a platform to a wallet — any wallet — constitutes a "transfer of crypto-assets on behalf of clients" (Art. 3(1)(26) MiCA). And a transfer of EMTs on behalf of clients is a payment service under PSD2.

Let's take a concrete example. You walk into a crypto OTC desk with cash. The desk exchanges your money for USDT. Now the desk sends those USDT to your wallet. That one step — sending USDT to a wallet — is a transfer of EMTs on your behalf. That is a payment service. And to legally perform it, the desk needs a payment institution (PI) or electronic money institution (EMI) license.

A CASP license under MiCA alone is not enough.

It doesn't matter whose wallet the stablecoins are going to. What matters is one thing: the platform executes an EMT transfer on behalf of a client. Transfer off-platform = payment service. No exceptions.

What's banned and what's allowed?

The EBA draws a clear line:

❌ BANNED without a PI license (after March 2, 2026):

  • Sending USDT/USDC or any other stablecoin (EMT) from the platform to any address outside the platform — on behalf of a client

✅ ALLOWED without an additional license (CASP is sufficient):

  • Receiving USDT/USDC onto the platform — a client deposits stablecoins from an external wallet
  • Buying stablecoins on the platform — e.g. selling BTC and buying USDC (crypto-to-crypto exchange)
  • Buying stablecoins with fiat — e.g. buying USDT with EUR/PLN (fiat-to-crypto exchange)
  • Holding stablecoins on the platform (custody)
  • Selling stablecoins for fiat — e.g. selling USDC and withdrawing EUR/PLN to a bank account (crypto-to-fiat exchange)
  • Swapping crypto-assets for other crypto-assets — e.g. USDT to BTC
  • Withdrawing BTC, ETH, and other non-EMT crypto-assets to a wallet — works as normal
  • Advisory, portfolio management, placement services

In other words: you can deposit stablecoins onto the platform, buy them, hold them, trade them, convert them to fiat, and withdraw money to your bank account. The only thing you can't do is send stablecoins off the platform to a wallet.

What license is required to send stablecoins off-platform?

To legally transfer stablecoins to wallets after March 2, 2026, a firm needs one of three options:

Option 1: Dual licensing — CASP + PI license

The firm obtains a CASP license under MiCA (for crypto services) AND a payment institution license under PSD2 (for EMT transfers). The EBA provides for a streamlined process — firms can reuse documentation from their CASP application. But capital requirements are cumulative: minimum EUR 125,000 under MiCA + Article 7 PSD2 requirements.

Example: CoinGate in Lithuania obtained dual licensing (CASP + PI) in December 2025 — precisely ahead of this deadline.

Option 2: Partnership with a PSP

The firm enters into an agreement with a licensed payment service provider. The PSP partner with a PI license executes the EMT transfer, while the CASP handles everything else (exchange, custody). This is the model the EBA explicitly suggests as a transitional solution.

Option 3: Disable EMT transfers

The firm drops stablecoin transfers and offers only exchange + custody without the ability to send EMTs off-platform. The client can buy USDT, sell it back for fiat, but cannot send it to a wallet.

There is no option four. Anyone transferring stablecoins after March 2 without one of the above options is breaking the law.

What are the penalties?

In its opinion of February 12, 2026, the EBA states explicitly: national competent authorities must require CASPs to discontinue EMT services if they do not hold a PI license, have not applied for one, or have not entered into a partnership with a PSP after March 2.

The MiCA Regulation (Art. 111) requires Member States to ensure effective and dissuasive sanctions:

  • Operating without the required authorization — the Polish act (if it were in force) provides for imprisonment from 6 months to 5 years
  • Administrative sanctions — fines up to EUR 5 million or up to 15% of annual revenue
  • Ban on holding management positions — up to 10 years
  • Public disclosure of the violation — naming & shaming on the regulator's website

Additionally, the EBA requires compliance with PSD2 strong customer authentication (SCA) requirements and fraud reporting obligations. Capital requirements are cumulative — a dual-licensed firm must meet both MiCA and PSD2 capital requirements simultaneously, with no mutual recognition.

But there's a fundamental problem: Poland does not currently have an enacted law to enforce any of this.

Poland won't make it in time to implement MiCA

On February 12, 2026, President Karol Nawrocki vetoed the crypto-assets market act for the second time. The first veto was issued on December 1, 2025. The revised version of the act differed from the original only cosmetically — the maximum supervisory fee was reduced to 0.1% of revenue. Everything else remained unchanged. The President again deemed the provisions disproportionate.

The result? Poland is one of the last EU countries without enacted MiCA provisions. As of today:

  • There is no way to submit a CASP license application in Poland — the KNF (Polish Financial Supervision Authority) has no legal basis to accept applications
  • The KNF has no tools to supervise the crypto-asset market under MiCA
  • Entities registered as VASPs can only operate until June 30, 2026 — after that, they lose their legal basis
  • Even in the most optimistic scenario, no Polish entity will obtain a CASP license before July 2026 — and dual licensing (CASP + PI) is out of the question entirely

For comparison: the Czech Republic, Lithuania, France, and Germany — all of these countries have had functioning CASP procedures for months. Their firms are already passporting services across the entire EU, including into Poland. And Polish firms? Standing still, watching the clock.

The absence of a national act also means the European Commission may initiate infringement proceedings against Poland, with the risk of penalties imposed by the Court of Justice of the EU.

What is Wanda Exchange doing?

We're not waiting.

For several weeks, we've been in active discussions with regulators and partners in other EU jurisdictions. We're looking for the optimal country to obtain a CASP license — one with a functioning procedure, reasonable requirements, and one that doesn't add 100 pages of regulation on top of what MiCA requires.

In parallel, we're exploring dual licensing (CASP + PI) options or partnerships with licensed PSPs, so that once we have our CASP, we can offer the full range of services — including stablecoin transfers.

Once we obtain a license, we will passport it into Poland. Under Article 65 of MiCA, any CASP licensed in one EU country can provide services in all 27 Member States — a simple notification to the host country's regulator is all it takes.

We will be able to legally serve Polish clients, just as we do today. The only difference? We'll pay taxes outside Poland. We'll create jobs outside Poland. Our registered office will be outside Poland.

And that's the paradox that hurts the most.

From Lithuania to Poland, from Poland to...?

I know this road because I've already walked it — but in the opposite direction.

Zoltic Sp. z o.o. was established in Poland. Deliberately. We had an operating entity in Lithuania since 2022 — a subsidiary of Wanda Exchange. But I made the decision to move the operational center to Poland. Because I wanted to pay taxes here. I wanted to hire people here and build a company.

In January 2025, we obtained our VASP license in Poland. We invested in AML/KYC procedures, in custody infrastructure, in banking relationships, in compliance. We built something that works.

And now the Polish state tells me: "We don't have a procedure for you. You can't submit a CASP application. Your VASP license expires in July. Good luck."

I'm not alone. The entire Polish crypto industry is backed against a wall. Companies that wanted to build here, pay taxes here, hire people here — are being pushed out to the Czech Republic, Lithuania, France, Malta. Not because they want to leave. Because the Polish state gave them no other choice.

And even if the act had passed in its original form — with 100+ pages of regulation versus a dozen in the Czech Republic, with one-click domain blocking, with supervisory fees — we would have had to relocate anyway. Because running a crypto company in that regulatory environment makes no economic sense when your neighbor offers the same European passport at a fraction of the cost and time.

It's a shame. I moved my company from Lithuania to Poland to pay taxes and hire people here. And the Polish state drove me out. And not just me — the entire crypto industry.

What does this mean for you — a Wanda Exchange client?

Let me reassure you: your funds are safe and our core services continue to operate.

From March 1, 2026, we're introducing changes required by the EBA:

  • ✅ EUR/PLN to crypto exchange (including stablecoins) — works as usual
  • ✅ Crypto to fiat exchange — works as usual
  • ✅ Custody — your funds are securely held
  • ✅ BTC, ETH, and other non-EMT crypto withdrawals — works as usual
  • ❌ Sending USDT, USDC, and other stablecoins (EMTs) off-platform to a wallet — unavailable until we obtain a PI license or enter into a PSP partnership

If you need to withdraw value held in stablecoins — convert them to fiat (EUR/PLN) and withdraw via bank transfer, or convert to BTC/ETH and withdraw to a wallet.

We're working to restore full stablecoin transfer functionality as quickly as possible — by obtaining the appropriate licenses in a jurisdiction that allows us to do so.

What's next?

Poland needs a new act. One that implements MiCA without gold-plating — without adding hundreds of pages of regulation beyond what the EU regulation requires. One that gives the KNF supervisory tools without pushing the entire industry abroad.

Professor Krzysztof Piech's team is working on an alternative draft based on the "EU + 0" principle — no additional national requirements on top of MiCA. I'm rooting for it, because the Polish crypto industry needs it.

As for us — we're doing what any responsible business should do in this situation: finding a legal path to continue serving our clients at full capacity. Even if that path leads through another jurisdiction. Even if it means taxes go elsewhere.

We're not leaving because we want to. We're leaving because we were given no other choice.