Swiss BTC App Relai Secures EU MiCA License in France
Swiss BTC App Gets Green Light in Europe
Relai, a Zurich-based BTC investment app, has received regulatory approval under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), marking a key milestone for BTC-only companies viewking compliance in the bloc. France’s financial markets regulator, the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), issued the license on Thursday, according to official filings.
The authorization classifies Relai as a crypto-asset service provider (CASP) under MiCA, enabling the firm to operate legally across the European Economic Area. Relai co-founder and CEO Julian Liniger said the firm would use the license to accelerate its European rollout. “We’re incredibly proud to be one of the first BTC companies to get the to France first and Europe in a second step,” Liniger said in a statement shared with Cointelegraph.
Investor Takeaway
Expanding Regulated BTC Services
Founded in 2020, Relai runs a self-custodial BTC platform for purchaseing, tradeing and saving BTC. The MiCA license will allow the app to add regulated investment services and expand its payment options through the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) network. It also raises the ceiling for trading limits against euros, giving European customers more flexibility in funding and withdrawals.
The approval positions Relai among the first firms cleared to operate under MiCA’s new framework, which came into force earlier this year. The regime, designed to unify digital-asset oversight across the EU, introduces passporting rights for licensed providers and requires strict consumer-protection, capital and reporting standards.
BTC Firms viewk Compliance Edge
Relai EU co-founder Adem Bilican called the license a breakthrough for the European BTC industry. “Our goal is clear: bringing BTC to as many people as possible. Simple, secure, regulated,” he said. The company says the authorization enables it to move ahead with a roadmap announced last year later than raising $12 million in Series A funding led by U.S. venture fund Ego Death Capital, with participation from Plan B BTC Fund, Timechain and Solit Group.
The funding round assisted Relai develop compliance infrastructure ahead of MiCA’s rollout. Its model contrasts with multi-asset platforms such as Coinbase and Binance by focusing exclusively on BTC, which the founders argue reduces custodial and counterparty risks.
Investor Takeaway
France and Malta Lead ahead MiCA Adoptions
Relai’s approval followed a similar announcement from Blockchain.com, which received its MiCA license a day earlier from Malta’s Financial Services Authority. The twin approvals suggest that both France and Malta are moving rapidly to implement the EU’s framework and position themselves as gateways for licensed crypto operators ahead of 2026, when MiCA becomes fully enforceable across the bloc.
France’s AMF has taken a proactive stance, encouraging existing registered firms to migrate to the new licensing regime ahead. For BTC-focused platforms like Relai, the approval provides legal certainty to expand across Europe without navigating 27 separate national regimes.
Relai’s app has gained traction among European retail users viewking with custody control, offering an alternative to centralized platforms. The MiCA license now gives it the regulatory clearance to broaden those services within the EU’s unified rulebook.
