Fireblocks’ Chief Legal Compliance Officer, Jason Allegrante, Describes MiCA as “A Chance”
The European Union’s (EU) Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) was a significant subject during the Paris Distributed ledger Week held from 8-10 April 2025. Industry figures such as Fireblocks Chief Legal Regulation Officer Jason Allegrante and OpenPayd CEO Iana Dimitrova also contributed to the discussions.
Commenting on MiCA from a “service provider’s viewpoint,” Allegrante stated, “With MiCA, we are witnessing a transition for businesses in the Eurozone, many of which were previously unregulated. They are shifting from an unregulated setting to one with substantial compliance requirements. For us at Fireblocks, this challenge presents an opportunity.”
MiCA signifies a major advancement for the crypto sector, yet stablecoin limitations need reexamination. Fireblocks’ Chief Legal and Regulation Officer, Jason Allegrante, highlights the necessity to reassess caps on stablecoin issuance and transactions.
Read his full insights on… pic.twitter.com/KTu9kONCZw
— Fireblocks (@FireblocksHQ) July 22, 2024
Moreover, discussing the EU’s newly enacted Crypto law on Digital Operational Resilience (DORA), in conjunction with MiCA, Allegrante remarked, “The other aspect that’s interesting for us has been as much a journey for us as it has for our clients and customers – is DORA. So, if you become a CASP under MiCA, you are also required to comply with DORA. DORA establishes a higher set of standards concerning certain service providers. This also influences financial institutions within the Eurozone. Thus, what was notable about the DORA journey was that if we intend to provide services – as I indicated, we do, to this community of CASPs and financial institutions – it meant Fireblocks would need to undergo its own re-evaluation process.”
Explore: Best New Cryptocurrencies to Invest in 2025
Allegrante Sheds Light On DORA
He elaborated, “We consider ourselves a security-first organization. This doesn’t imply we believe the product is flawless. It’s a commitment to refine the product continually. We engage in practices like running a bug bounty program, conducting penetration tests, and performing audits. All this is based on our assumption that the product can be bettered, which mirrors the path we undertook during our initial DORA audit.”
“It was likely less about technical aspects where we discovered opportunities for enhancement,” he said, “but we faced significant challenges regarding our assumptions about what the customer service model should embody. There are components like information disclosures, access rights, and various elements that essentially govern and shape your relationship with the customer. The extent of openness and transparency you can provide is crucial. That’s where we identified the potential for improvement post our inaugural DORA audit. In response to these observations, Fireblocks converted our insights and regulatory understanding into new product offerings.”
“We have bundled existing services that are highly responsive to MiCA.”
DISCOVER: 20+ Next Crypto to Explode in 2025
Meanwhile, CEO Of Payments Company OpenPayd Believes MiCA Is “Fairly Straightforward”
About a year prior, OpenPayd initiated the process of securing the first virtual financial asset license in Europe, subsequently adjusting to comply with MiCA.
“Experiencing it practically, I believe, will differ significantly for someone from the crypto sphere,” noted Dimitrova. “For us, the experience has been relatively straightforward since we already possess the compliance and regulatory framework necessary.”
“However, if one lacks that (crypto law and crypto law) institutional experience and knowledge, navigating MiCA’s numerous requirements regarding governance, board and committee compositions, decision-making processes, conduct of business, and safeguarding and reserves could prove to be quite challenging. Thus, our experience has been largely positive and reasonably straightforward. I wouldn’t term it entirely straightforward since it did come with its own challenges. But this is largely due to our extensive history of being regulated across various jurisdictions.”
Key Takeaways
-
“The other aspect that has proven to be intriguing for us and as much of a journey for us as it is for our clients and customers – is DORA. If you qualify as a CASP under MiCA, you are also subject to DORA,” emphasized Fireblocks Chief Legal Crypto law Officer Jason Allegrante.
-
Industry leaders indicate that MiCA lacks specific guidelines on auditing. All regulations are encompassed within DORA.
The post Fireblocks Chief Legal Crypto law Officer Jason Allegrante Calls MiCA “An Opportunity” appeared first on 99Bitcoins.
