The European Parliament has recently adopted the MiCA, a regulatory framework for markets in crypto assets, but one that seems to exclude NFTs and DeFi from it.

The MiCA proposal, short for markets in crypto assets, was adopted by the European Parliament on April 20th, alongside the Accompanying Regulation, which is focused on regulation of information that comes with transferring crypto assets.

The goal of MiCA is to have an established framework for crypto assets at the EU level that will ensure consumer protection and prevent market manipulation while imposing transparency and disclosure requirements. This means that any national frameworks currently set up by any member of the EU will be replaced in favor of this new framework that covers cryptocurrencies, including stablecoins, but not NFTs and DeFi markets, as revealed by last week’s press release from the AMF.

According to the press release, non-fungible tokens are not part of the MiCA regulation unless they meet the criteria imposed on cryptocurrencies in the new framework. It’s also stated that the European Commission will look to create a specific proposal for NFTs in the future, that is, within 18 months from July 2023, when the MiCA text will enter into force, with the new rules set to be applied “progressively,” according to Commissioner McGuinness. DeFi will be kept an eye on as well, and have eventually have its own regulatory framework.

Overall, it seems the uncertainty and regulatory concerns for crypto developers residing in countries in the EU will continue to linger for a little while longer.