Bybit Payments GmbH has been granted an electronic money institution licence in Austria, giving Bybit a second regulated entity alongside its MiCA-authorised crypto business.
The two companies will keep separate capital and safeguarding obligations while customers access both through a single Bybit.eu account.
Regulation, Not Branding, Drives the Split
Bybit EU GmbH has held MiCA authorisation since May 2025, covering crypto custody, exchange, and client transfers. Bybit Payments GmbH now holds the EMI licence, covering e-money and payment services.
The two licences sit under different EU regimes. MiCA sets rules for crypto-asset custody and trading. EMI status brings separate requirements around capital, risk management, and client-fund safeguarding under PSD2.
Bybit cannot fold payments into its crypto entity without meeting both sets of requirements twice over, which is why the business is split at the legal-entity level rather than merged into one licence.
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Other Exchanges Split Licences the Same Way
Bybit is not alone in keeping crypto and payments under separate licences.
Kraken has held an EMI authorisation for its Irish entity since 2023. It added a MiCA licence from the same regulator a year later. The EMI licence covers 27 EU states; the MiCA licence passports across the 30-country EEA.
Crypto.com took the opposite route. The exchange has held an EMI licence in Malta since 2021. It added MiCA authorisation in January 2025.
In February 2026, it returned to the MFSA for a separate Limited Financial Institutions licence, covering stablecoin services that fell under both MiCA and PSD2 at once.
The pattern across all three exchanges points to the same constraint. No single EU licence yet covers crypto custody and payment services together. Platforms are assembling the two functions from separate approvals as each product line requires it.
The EMI Licence Covers Services That Are Not Live Yet
Bybit has not launched any of the products the EMI licence enables. The company lists person-to-person payments, Strong Customer Authentication, open-banking functionality, merchant payment tools, and card products as candidates for future rollout.
"Maintaining a clear distinction between the two regulated entities is fundamental," said Bernhard Krick, managing director at Bybit Payments GmbH.
"Each entity will provide services within its own permissions, while customers will be able to access those services through the Bybit.eu platform."
Georg Harer, who holds the managing director role at both entities, framed the EMI licence as a way to reduce Bybit's reliance on third-party payment providers and build direct relationships with banks and payment institutions over time.
Bybit has not set a date for when the payment features will go live. The company says further details on product launches and the wider European rollout will follow.
