Circle's USDC stablecoin has become the first e-money token to be classified as "significant" under the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). The European Banking Authority (EBA) announced the designation on October 14 in an official press release, making USDC the first of 45 notified e-money tokens to receive the status. From November 12, 2026, the EBA will directly supervise key financial requirements for the stablecoin alongside France's banking regulator, giving the two authorities just over a year to coordinate the handover.

EBA Takes Over USDC's Financial Supervision

Under MiCA's framework for significant tokens, the EBA will assume direct oversight of USDC's own funds, reserve assets, liquidity requirements, and recovery and redemption plans. These responsibilities will transfer from France's Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution (ACPR). Reserve and liquidity rules sit at the center of stablecoin oversight, since the assets an issuer holds are what stand behind redemption of the token at its stated value.

The transfer does not cover everything. The ACPR will retain oversight of corporate governance, qualifying holdings, management suitability assessments, outsourcing, and conflicts of interest. The two authorities will coordinate the transition and cooperate on ongoing supervision.

USDC is issued in Europe by Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS and in the United States by Circle Internet Financial LLC. The EBA has also signed a memorandum of understanding with the New York State Department of Financial Services to support information sharing on cross-border stablecoin activities.

First of 45 Notified E-Money Tokens

According to the EBA, regulators have received notifications for 45 e-money tokens under MiCA. USDC is the first to meet the criteria for significant classification following the authority's assessment. As the initial designation, it offers the first reference point for how the EBA applies those criteria to the other notified tokens.

The designation does not grant Circle a new license, nor does it move all of its regulatory oversight to the EBA. Instead, it adds direct European-level supervision of specific financial safeguards while the ACPR retains its existing responsibilities.

Circle's French subsidiary received an electronic money institution license from the ACPR in July 2024. That approval allowed it to issue USDC and its euro-backed stablecoin, EURC, under European rules. MiCA's provisions for e-money tokens took effect across the bloc in June 2024, creating the EU's first unified rulebook for stablecoin issuers.

Circle's Reserve Rules Debate Continues

The classification comes as Circle presses European policymakers to review MiCA's stablecoin reserve requirements. The company has questioned rules requiring issuers to hold part of their reserves in bank deposits.

Circle cited the 2023 collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, when approximately $3.3 billion in USDC reserves became temporarily inaccessible and the token briefly lost its dollar peg. The company has argued for reserve requirements that place greater emphasis on liquidity rather than fixed bank deposit rules.

The EBA's classification applies existing MiCA requirements and does not adopt Circle's proposed changes. Two threads therefore remain open to watch: the start of direct EBA supervision in November 2026, and whether European policymakers revisit the reserve rules Circle has challenged.