Crypto licenses by country
Whether you need a license to run a crypto business, who issues it, and under what law, depends entirely on the country. This page compares every jurisdiction we track; each links to a guide covering the regulator, the framework, the costs and the application process, built from primary sources rather than sales pages.
All tracked jurisdictions compared
| Jurisdiction | Regime | Regulator | Framework | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Bahamas | Registration regime | Securities Commission of The Bahamas | Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges Act (2024) | In research |
 Barbados | No dedicated regime | Central Bank of Barbados and the Financial Services Commission | No dedicated statute | Full guide |
 Croatia | EU MiCA (CASP) | Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency (HANFA) | EU Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) (2023) | In research |
 Ecuador | No dedicated regime | None designated | No dedicated statute | In research |
 Serbia | Licensing regime | National Bank of Serbia and the Securities Commission | Law on Digital Assets (2020) | In research |
 Seychelles | Licensing regime | Financial Services Authority (FSA) Seychelles | Virtual Asset Service Providers Act (2024) | In research |
 Slovakia | EU MiCA (CASP) | National Bank of Slovakia (NBS) | EU Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) (2023) | In research |
 Slovenia | EU MiCA (CASP) | Securities Market Agency (ATVP) | EU Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) (2023) | In research |
 St. Lucia | Licensing regime | Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) | Virtual Asset Business Act (2022) | In research |
 St. Vincent and the Grenadines | Registration regime | Financial Services Authority (FSA) | Virtual Asset Business Act (2022) | In research |
 Uzbekistan | Licensing regime | National Agency of Perspective Projects (NAPP) | Presidential Decree No. UP-121 on crypto-asset turnover (2022) | In research |
1 of these 11 jurisdictions carry a fully researched guide. The rest already state their regulator and framework, verified against official sources, and fill in as our research is reviewed. Regulator names and frameworks reflect our latest review date on each page.
How to actually compare jurisdictions
The regime type is the first filter: a licensing act with capital requirements, a registration regime that mostly means AML supervision, the EU's shared MiCA authorization, or no framework at all. After that the questions that decide real projects are boring and practical. What does the regulator require in local substance, directors and staff? What are the published fees and the unpublished professional costs? How long do applications actually take, not how long does the statute promise? And will a bank open an account for a company licensed there?
One warning applies everywhere: licensing consultancies rank highly in search for every one of these countries, and some of them advertise licenses that do not exist. Barbados is the clearest case, where a "DASP license" is marketed for a country whose framework is still at the consultation stage. Every fact on our pages links to the regulator or the statute so you can check it yourself.
Planning a license application?
Tell us what you are building and where you want to operate, and we will point you at the right starting documents for your shortlist and, where we know one, a consultant or law firm with real experience in that jurisdiction. The pointer costs nothing; we may earn a referral fee if you engage a provider we introduce.
Frequently asked questions
What is a crypto license?
Authorization from a country's financial regulator to run a crypto business: an exchange, a custodian, a broker, or a payments service. What it is called and what it costs varies completely by jurisdiction. Some countries run full licensing acts with capital requirements, some only register businesses for AML supervision, EU members share one authorization under MiCA, and some countries have no framework at all.
Which country has the cheapest crypto license?
Be suspicious of any site that answers this with a single confident number. Headline government fees are the smallest part of the real cost: minimum capital, local substance (directors, offices, compliance staff), professional fees and time dominate, and they shift with every amendment. Our per-country pages carry the official figures with sources and dates where the regulator publishes them, and say so where it does not.
Do EU countries still issue their own national crypto licenses?
No. The EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) replaced national regimes: crypto-asset service providers now need one CASP authorization from their home regulator, valid across the EU. National transition windows for legacy registrations have been closing country by country since 2025, which is why the EU entries on this page point at MiCA rather than an older national license.
Can I run a crypto business from a country with no framework?
Sometimes, but no framework does not mean no law. General company, AML, securities and payments law still applies, banks still ask what license you hold, and other countries where your customers live still apply their own rules to you. The honest read of a no-framework jurisdiction is on each page, including what regulators there have said is coming.
The other side of the market
These pages are for operators. If you are here to buy bitcoin rather than sell it, every jurisdiction above also has a buying guide: all 231 country guides cover exchanges, payment methods and legality for residents, and the glossary explains the vocabulary regulators use.