Pin and benchmark
Pin the jurisdiction you are leaning towards, then line up to 5 rivals against it. Every unlocked figure shows where a peer beats it or loses to it on capital, timeline, cost and difficulty, so one screen tells you whether your first choice actually holds up.
Sign in to watch these jurisdictions for changes.
| Dimension |
Pinned 🇨🇾 Cyprus partly open Verified 2026-07-03
|
🇵🇹 Portugal
partly open
Verified 2026-07-01
|
|---|---|---|
| Licence type | MiCA CASP Authorisation granted by CySEC; existing Cyprus Investment Firms (CIFs) can extend their licence to cover crypto-asset services under a simplified process | MiCA CASP authorisation implemented by Lei n.o 69/2025 (22 Dec 2025). Replaces the legacy Banco de Portugal VASP (AML) registration. |
| Regulator | Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) - sole National Competent Authority for MiCA in Cyprus | Twin-peaks: BANCO DE PORTUGAL is the CASP authorisation authority + prudential/AML supervisor (single application front door); CMVM is the conduct-of-business and market-abuse supervisor. (Corrects the seed - not CMVM-led.) |
| Capital requirement | Cyprus capital requirement is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal capital requirement is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. |
| Timeline to authorisation | Cyprus timeline to authorisation is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal timeline to authorisation is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. |
| Local substance | Cyprus local substance is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal local substance is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. |
| Application cost | Cyprus application cost is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal application cost is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. |
| Ongoing cost | Cyprus ongoing cost is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal ongoing cost is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. |
| Passporting | Cyprus passporting is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal passporting is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. |
| MiCA CASPs approved | Cyprus mica casps approved is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal mica casps approved is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. |
| Key restrictions | Cyprus key restrictions is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal key restrictions is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. |
| Recent changes | CySEC set a hard 27 February 2026 deadline for existing national-regime CASPs to submit MiCA applications; preliminary assessment phase opened 13 Nov 2024, formal applications from 1 Jan 2025; national transitional regime and full MiCA regime now running in parallel toward the 1 July 2026 EU-wide cutover | Lei 69/2025 (MiCA) + Lei 70/2025 (Travel Rule) published 22 Dec 2025 - ~1 year late. Legacy-VASP transitional window closes 1 Jul 2026 (today). Few Portugal-AUTHORISED CASPs so far. |
| Difficulty rating | Cyprus difficulty rating is locked. Unlock with the £349 pass. | Portugal difficulty rating is locked. Unlock with 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.