Bitcoin.de trading suspended, German regulators reject MiCA application

比特币集团调整运营策略，德国监管机构拒绝MiCA授权

Bitcoin Group SE宣布，在德国的金融监管机构BaFin拒绝其银行子公司futurum bank AG根据欧盟《加密资产市场法规》（MiCA）作为加密资产服务提供商的授权后，该公司正在筹备一种不同的方式来运营其bitcoin.de平台。

该公司在10月6日的一份公告中表示，尽管将此次拒绝视为挫折，但早已对此结果有所预案。Bitcoin Group SE指出，目前正审查BaFin的决定，可以选择提出异议或在稍后阶段提交新的申请。该集团还表示，正致力于通过受监管的合作伙伴“尽可能快地”恢复交易。

关键要点

• BaFin拒绝了futurum bank AG的MiCA授权申请，迫使Bitcoin Group SE重新思考bitcoin.de的运营架构。
• 集团正在审查该决定，可提出上诉或在未来提交新申请。
• 自6月12日起，随着平台将客户资产转移至新的托管基础设施，bitcoin.de上的交易已基本暂停。
• 在实施替代运营模式的同时，Bitcoin Group SE旨在通过受监管的合作伙伴恢复交易。

据该公司称，bitcoin.de拥有超过110万注册用户，该平台计划向经纪商模式转型。

为何BaFin的MiCA拒绝会改变计划

According to MiCA regulations, entities providing crypto asset services in the EU usually need to obtain authorization from relevant national regulatory authorities. Bitcoin Group SE stated that BaFin's rejection affected its ability to continue advancing bitcoin.de's forward-looking service structure in accordance with the MiCA framework.

bitcoin.de is operated by futurum bank AG, a subsidiary of Bitcoin Group SE. The company said the platform has more than 1.1 million registered users. Although the platform initially operated as a peer-to-peer market, it has been transitioning to a broker-style model.

Therefore, BaFin's decision not only affects the compliance timetable, but also affects the mechanism for executing transactions under the new regulatory approach. The company now says its top priority is to implement alternative operating models rather than relying on denied authorization paths.

Features that bitcoin.de has previously planned to launch

Bitcoin Group SE said it has transformed bitcoin.de this year to operate as a broker and plans to expand its offer of cryptocurrencies to more than 100 types. The roadmap also includes crypto swaps and pledge capabilities, which is expected to be launched in late June.

The scheduled release did not go ahead as scheduled. While futurum bank AG awaited MiCA authorization, the platform postponed this step. As part of its transition preparations, bitcoin.de informed customers in an August update that its crypto assets had been moved to a new custody infrastructure and that its previous trading system had been shut down.

Trading has been suspended since June due to prolonged authorization waiting times

These changes subsequently led to widespread trading suspensions. The company said trading activity on bitcoin.de has largely stopped since June 12.

This point in time is important because it clarifies the operational impact of authorization risks: clients have been moved to new custody arrangements and trading engines that existed before the broker's transition have been deactivated. In other words, platform downtime appears to be directly related to the regulatory approval process, rather than just technology upgrades.

With BaFin now rejecting MiCA applications, the question becomes what happens next for customer access and transaction execution. Bitcoin Group SE said it is seeking workarounds-specifically, resuming transactions through regulated partners-while building an alternative operating model it says is implementing.

What investors and customers should pay attention to

Bitcoin Group SE's next steps include two aspects: one is to review BaFin's decision and have the right to object or seek a new application later; and the other is to try to restart transactions through other regulated channels. This dual-track approach suggests the company is trying to balance long-term regulatory solutions with short-term customer continuity.

Despite this, there are still some practical uncertainties. It is unclear how quickly trading resumes through regulated partners can be fully implemented, or how planned broker functions-such as expanding cryptocurrency availability, swaps and pledges-will be implemented under the revised operating model. Readers should also pay attention to whether the company's appeal process will change the timetable for the platform's expected full service restart.

The most direct signal for bitcoin.de users is to see if regulated partner arrangements begin to resume active trading in a way that conforms to the platform's expected broker structure. For the broader market, the case once again proves that MiCA authorizations can directly determine whether major retail cryptocurrency venues can continue to operate under the new regulatory regime.