Coinbase to delist some stablecoins in Europe ahead of new regulations

(Reuters) - Coinbase will delist certain stablecoins in the European Economic Area by year's end, the cryptocurrency exchange said on Friday, as the industry braces for tougher regulation in the region.

The European Union's landmark crypto regulatory framework, known as the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, introduced in early 2023, is set to be fully applied by December.

It requires issuers of stablecoins - crypto tokens whose monetary value is pegged to a stable asset to protect from wild volatility - to meet strict transparency, liquidity, and consumer protection standards.

"Given our commitment to compliance, we intend to restrict the provision of services to EEA users in connection with stablecoins that do not meet the MiCA requirements by December 30, 2024," the top U.S. crypto exchange said in an emailed statement.

Coinbase plans to offer in November impacted EEA customers options to switch to authorized issuers like fintech firm Circle's USDC and EURC, whose value is pegged to the U.S. dollar and euro, respectively.

Stablecoins have gained significant popularity in recent years, as financial heavyweights such as PayPal adopt them and the rapid integration into mainstream finance of the once-nascent digital assets sector.

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)