Paysafe has secured a Crypto-Asset Service Provider licence under the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets framework from the Central Bank of Ireland, clearing the way for Skrill and Neteller to offer regulated crypto services across the European Economic Area. Under the MiCA regime, the company can passport that approval into 30 markets with a single licence instead of seeking separate national authorisations. The approval also opens Germany, where Paysafe’s digital wallets had previously operated without crypto support.
Germany becomes the key addition
Germany is Paysafe’s largest digital wallet market in Europe and one of the region’s most compliance-driven financial jurisdictions. The launch matters because the company is entering under full regulatory approval rather than a temporary or transitional setup, showing how MiCA’s tougher operating standards are already shaping market access.
Bob Legters, Chief Product Officer at Paysafe, said the licence allows Skrill and Neteller users in Germany to buy and sell crypto in a fully regulated way. He added that entering Germany for the first time with a fully regulated crypto offering carries particular weight given the scale of the market and its strong focus on compliance.
MiCA is changing the economics of expansion
MiCA replaces the EU’s fragmented national licensing model with a single rulebook. That cuts down on regulatory arbitrage and raises the bar for firms that want to operate across several jurisdictions. The source notes that only a limited number of companies have obtained CASP licences so far, placing Paysafe among the earlier fully authorised participants under the new framework.
Skrill and Neteller already hold e-money licences. With MiCA approval added on top, Paysafe can combine fiat and crypto services inside one compliance structure. That gives the company a way to support a multi-asset wallet model without setting up separate regulated entities for each product line.
Payments firms are folding crypto into existing wallet rails
The approval also points to a broader direction for established payments and e-money groups. Instead of isolating digital asset products, they are weaving crypto features into their core wallet infrastructure. That can reduce product fragmentation for users while aligning more closely with regulatory requirements tied to asset safeguarding, operational resilience, and oversight.
As MiCA implementation moves forward, the contest across Europe is shifting away from simple market entry and toward execution. For Paysafe, the combination of existing distribution, customer relationships, and licensing coverage now extends into Germany, the company’s biggest digital wallet market in the region.