European Union · CoinDesk
MiCA's cleanup is creating a new scam wave across the European Union
Compiled by KHAO Editorial — aggregated from 1 source. See llms.txt for citation guidance.
★ Tier-1 Source
The European Union’s (EU) crypto clean-up has handed scammers a weapon.
Key facts
- When the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulations’ ramework came into full force on July 1, more than 1,700 unlicensed crypto platforms were required to stop serving EU customers and direct them
- The Netherlands' Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) warned that the migration of unregulated crypto exchanges itself was the attack surface
- That gap, in which up to 10 million users were told to move their digital assets, is exactly what fraudsters needed
- European regulators, however, say they have seen an increase in crypto scams since the July 1 deadline
Summary
When the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulations’ ramework came into full force on July 1, more than 1,700 unlicensed crypto platforms were required to stop serving EU customers and direct them to licensed alternatives. Social engineering scams were already concerning in 2025. A spokesperson for France's Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) noted scammers were posing as AMF employees, convincing victims to pay upfront administrative fees to recover stolen funds. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) confirmed it was aware of criminals misusing its identity, name, and logo, including through falsified documents, to convince users that their funds were at risk. The Netherlands' Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) warned that the migration of unregulated crypto exchanges itself was the attack surface.