Pin and benchmark
Pin one jurisdiction. Line up to five rivals against it. Deltas show where each peer is better or worse.
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| Dimension |
Pinned 🇪🇪 Estonia partly open Verified 2026-08-15
|
🇩🇪 Germany
partly open
Verified 2026-08-15
|
|---|---|---|
| Licence type | MiCA CASP authorisation; implemented via the Crypto-Assets Market Act (Kruptovarade turu seadus, KrüTS), in force 1 July 2024. | MiCA CASP authorisation granted by BaFin under national law FinmadiG/KMAG; replaces the legacy KWG crypto-custody business licence, with a simplified transition for existing KWG-licensed firms. |
| Regulator | Finantsinspektsioon (Estonian Financial Supervision and Resolution Authority) | BaFin (Bundesanstalt fur Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht) with Deutsche Bundesbank involvement; applications go to both. Widely regarded as the EU's most demanding CASP regulator. |
| Capital requirement | Estonia capital requirement is included in the £349 pass. | Germany capital requirement is included in the £349 pass. |
| Timeline to authorisation | Estonia timeline to authorisation is included in the £349 pass. | Germany timeline to authorisation is included in the £349 pass. |
| Local substance | Estonia local substance is included in the £349 pass. | Germany local substance is included in the £349 pass. |
| Application cost | Estonia application cost is included in the £349 pass. | Germany application cost is included in the £349 pass. |
| Ongoing cost | Estonia ongoing cost is included in the £349 pass. | Germany ongoing cost is included in the £349 pass. |
| Passporting | Estonia passporting is included in the £349 pass. | Germany passporting is included in the £349 pass. |
| MiCA CASPs approved | Estonia mica casps approved is included in the £349 pass. | Germany mica casps approved is included in the £349 pass. |
| Key restrictions | Estonia key restrictions is included in the £349 pass. | Germany key restrictions is included in the £349 pass. |
| Recent changes | Estonia's VASP population collapsed from 641 valid licences (mid-2021 peak) to 36 remaining by early 2026; as of recent reporting only one entity (Lightspark Payments Europe AS) had received full MiCA CASP authorisation. From 18 March 2026, CASP applications must go through FI's new application portal. | FinmadiG + KMAG in force 27 Dec 2024; Germany used a 12-month grandfathering (apply before 8 Oct 2025; effective end-2025). By mid-2026 the EU's #1 hub - ~57 CASP authorisations (~23% of the EU's ~244), incl. Trade Republic, N26, Commerzbank, Bitpanda. BaFin's KMAnzV notification ordinance under KMAG (issued 20 May 2026, Federal Gazette 26 May 2026) standardises CASP notification forms and procedures. ESMA's interim register recorded 61 German CASP entries at its 24 July 2026 refresh, including cooperative banks Raiffeisenbank Auerbach-Freihung eG (19 June 2026) and Volksbank Schwarzwald-Donau-Neckar eG (2 July 2026), both for order execution only. |
| Difficulty rating | Estonia difficulty rating is included in the £349 pass. | Germany difficulty rating is included in the £349 pass. |
Informational only, not legal advice. A delta compares the sortable figure only (capital, timeline, cost, difficulty, passporting, approvals); it is not a judgement on overall suitability. Verify with qualified counsel before acting.
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