TLDR The Wall Street Journal reports that ECB President Christine Lagarde personally urged Greece not to approve Binance’s MiCA application. Binance withdrew its Greek application on June 24,
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sept. 18 that European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde personally urged Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis against approving Binance’s application for a crypto license.
The report says Lagarde raised the issue during licensing talks in June, as Greek regulators appeared close to approving the exchange’s request.
Binance had reportedly been preparing to announce approval in late May. The company had drafted a release describing it as a “Major Milestone.”
The head of the ECB personally intervened to keep crypto’s biggest player, which pleaded guilty to financial-crime violations in the U.S., from operating in the EU https://t.co/JRCeDmydeJ
— WSJ Markets (@WSJmarkets) September 18, 2026
Co-CEO Richard Teng had planned to travel to Athens to meet with Mitsotakis around that time. That meeting did not take place as originally planned.
Neither Lagarde, the ECB, nor Greece’s Hellenic Capital Market Commission has publicly confirmed the WSJ report.
The WSJ said Lagarde’s concerns included Binance’s 2023 guilty plea in the United States. Binance settled for more than $4 billion after violating money transmitting and sanctions laws.
Reuters had earlier reported that Binance’s legal history was one of the issues European regulators examined during the Greek review process.
The WSJ also said Lagarde worried that approving Binance could increase the use of U.S. dollar stablecoins across Europe.
Lagarde has spoken about this concern publicly before, without naming Binance directly. In a May speech, she said stablecoin supply had grown past $300 billion, with Tether and Circle controlling nearly 90% of the market.
She said Europe risks “digital dollarisation” if foreign currency stablecoins become deeply embedded in the region’s financial system.
Before withdrawing, Binance said it understood that Greek regulators had completed their review and found the application compliant with MiCA rules.
Reuters reported in June that Greek regulators were preparing to reject the application, citing people familiar with the process. The regulator declined to comment at the time.
Binance withdrew its application on June 24, before a final decision was issued. The company said it would pursue authorization in another EU country instead.
The withdrawal came as an EU transition deadline approached. Firms operating under older national rules could continue only until July 1, 2026, or until a MiCA decision was made.
Without EU-wide authorization, Binance told European users that some services would be restricted after the deadline, though withdrawals remained available.
Binance has kept looking for a new licensing route since then. Reuters reported in July that other regulators had shown interest in the exchange applying in their jurisdictions.
Some Binance customers have continued using the platform through reverse solicitation and offshore arrangements, including an entity based in Abu Dhabi.
crypto.news earlier reported that ESMA, the EU’s securities regulator, had asked for information about whether Binance was properly winding down its unlicensed activity in the bloc.
A separate debate continues in Brussels over whether ESMA should directly supervise large crypto exchanges instead of national regulators handling it individually.
The European Commission proposed giving ESMA that authority, but EU member states have pushed back, favoring oversight limited to only the largest providers.
The Commission opened a public review of MiCA in May. That consultation remains open through Sept. 30.
Binance has not announced a new MiCA license since leaving Greece. Its most recent statements say it still plans to apply in another EU member state.
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