Overview
- OKX Europe announced a voluntary one‑way deposit route that lets customers in 30 EU and EEA countries send USDT to the exchange and convert it into Circle‑issued USDC through a Circle partnership.
- The feature includes up to an 8% deposit bonus for assets moved from non‑MiCA platforms and supports USDC and Paxos’s USDG for deposits, trading and related services on OKX Europe.
- The change follows the EU’s Markets in Crypto‑Assets (MiCA) rules that require licensed platforms to stop offering stablecoins from issuers without MiCA authorization, prompting delistings and deposit restrictions by major exchanges.
- Tether has declined to seek MiCA authorization and its CEO defended that stance on reserve rules, which has left USDT increasingly restricted in Europe and concentrated in markets outside the bloc.
- The shift is driving a reallocation of liquidity to compliant issuers, squeezing EU USDT volumes and setting up competition among licensed platforms to absorb users, a dynamic that will affect how European holders choose to convert, withdraw or self‑custody their funds.