MiCA Sets Stage as KBC Becomes Belgium’s First Bank to Offer Crypto Trading

KBC Bank confirms plans under MiCA to launch Belgium’s first direct crypto trading service. KBC declared that the rollout will begin in the week of February 16. Over four million users will have access to the service. The feature will enable customers to buy and sell digital assets in the Bolero environment as soon as it becomes operational.

The bank indicated that the launch will occur after it becomes a Crypto-Asset Service Provider under MiCA, following the submission of its application. In December 2025, Belgium successfully completed its national implementation of the MiCA regulation. The legal structure took effect on January 3, 2026.

Belgium Sets New MiCA Rules for Crypto Providers

The management of whether services using digital assets are provided in Belgium falls under the Financial Services and Markets Authority and the National Bank of Belgium. Under the new structure, the two regulators have overlapping responsibilities. KBC affirmed that its crypto trading businesses are going to operate within the new regulations.

The bank asserts that the MiCA framework includes Bitcoin and Ethereum as other crypto-assets. The two assets are not stablecoins or asset-referenced tokens because they lack a central issuer. The designation defines the obligations that apply to service providers.

MiCA imposes both operational and compliance responsibilities on every authorized platform. These are custody protection, capital requirements, data protection standards, and market abuse control. The providers must also strictly scrutinize customer activity to prevent the mixing of customer assets with company funds.

KBC said that Bolero trading will function as a closed-loop system. The only thing that its users can do is to purchase and sell on the platform. External exchanges will not be allowed. According to the bank, this model minimizes fraud, money laundering, and illegal flows of finance.

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KBC’s infrastructure will assume the responsibility of digital asset custody. Customers won’t need to hold personal keys or interact with external exchanges. According to the bank, any form of deal will be linked to superior know-your-customer processes. The complete verification process applies to all funds used to place orders.

KBC Brings Regulated Crypto Trading to Belgium

The launch of crypto trading follows several years when Belgian investors depended on offshore markets. Binance, Coinbase, and OKX were the most popular platforms, taking over the local activity. Other basic exposures were provided by digital banks such as Revolut and N26; these were not regulated by domestic banking regulations.

KBC reported that the new service was a reaction to the ongoing demand from retail clients. The bank observed that the interest in digital assets has not reduced due to stricter control over digital resources in Europe. By entering the market, it provides regulated access to a previously foreign-dominated market.

The announcement also mentioned the bank’s approval of its European trading platform, meinKrypto. BaFin licensed the platform to provide trading services of Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cardano, and Litecoin throughout the region. The license broadens KBC’s scope by being under a single licensing regime.

The launch of KBC will be a major shift in the Belgium financial market. It gets to be the first regulated crypto trading service within a large bank in the country. The shift also indicates increased congruence with European principles because organizations are gearing up to engage in the broader digital-asset market.

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