Austria’s financial regulator has fined Bitpanda €70,000 (approximately $75,600) for violating the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). The penalty covers failures to meet the 20-working-day deadline for filing a crypto-asset white paper and for issuing marketing content before the white paper’s release. The Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) confirmed the fine does not affect Bitpanda’s authorized crypto service provider status. The decision marks Austria’s first published, legally binding MiCA sanction. Other exchanges, including WhiteBIT EU and Bitget EU, are advancing their MiCA licensing processes in Austria.
Austria’s FMA fined Bitpanda €70,000 for breaches of the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, covering white paper and marketing rules. The regulator announced the sanctions on August 14 and confirmed the penalty order is final.
Under MiCA, service providers must file a crypto-asset white paper at least 20 working days before publication. The FMA found Bitpanda violated that deadline under Articles 8(1) and 8(5). The firm also issued marketing material before releasing the relevant white paper, and the content lacked mandatory disclosures.
The marketing material did not state that a competent authority had not reviewed or approved it, nor that the provider was responsible for its content. Required contact information, including a telephone number or email address, was also missing.
The €70,000 fine concerns disclosure and advertising obligations only. The FMA did not report investor losses, custody failures, or withdrawal problems, and it did not suspend or restrict Bitpanda’s authorization. The regulator described the ruling as its first published, legally binding MiCA penalty decision.
Bitpanda received MiCA authorization from Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority in January 2025 and remains listed as an authorized crypto service provider in Austria. The penalty did not remove that status.
Other exchanges are advancing MiCA plans in Austria. WhiteBIT EU received a license on June 20, while Bitget EU advanced its MiCAR application on June 17.
The FMA processed the case through a fast-track procedure under Section 22(2b) of the Financial Market Authority Act. Bitpanda remains liable for fulfilling ongoing MiCA requirements, including disclosure and marketing practices. The completed case does not change the company’s broader obligations.
