Three Licenses in Parallel: Full Coverage of Crypto, Brokerage, and Payments
Backpack EU has announced that it has been granted a MiCA license and a Payment Institution (PSD2) license by the Central Bank of Latvia (Latvijas Banka). Combined with the previously obtained MiFID II license, Backpack now holds full regulatory coverage across three major business areas: crypto assets, securities brokerage, and payment services. Specifically, the MiCA license allows the firm to offer crypto asset custody and exchange services; the MiFID II license covers derivatives contracts, securities, and brokerage activities; and the PSD2 payment license enables stablecoin-based payment services. This means Backpack can now legally operate a complete business chain within the EU single market—from fiat on/off-ramps to crypto trading, derivatives, and securities trading.
Three Years of European Presence, Global Compliance Ambitions
Backpack stated that it has been operating in the European market for over three years and previously participated in the compensation program for FTX Europe users, giving it deep insight into the local regulatory environment. The newly obtained MiCA and PSD2 licenses are not only a key step in its European compliance strategy but will also serve as a reference for regulatory applications in Japan, South Korea, and the United States. As global regulatory frameworks for crypto assets tighten, Backpack’s early establishment of a full license matrix in Europe positions it competitively for cross-regional compliance.
Notably, the MiCA license is the core compliance credential under the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), allowing Backpack to offer crypto services across all EU member states without separate applications in each country. The PSD2 license enables seamless integration with fiat payment rails, particularly suitable for euro-denominated stablecoin payments and transfers.