Bit2Me and Cecabank on the institutional adoption of digital assets under MiCA: custody, RTO and partnerships

MiCA and traditional finance: the institutional adoption of digital assets is already here

Is traditional banking ready to custody and operate crypto assets? In this MERGE Madrid panel, financial institutions and crypto players discuss how MiCA has turned the institutional adoption of digital assets into a present-day reality, with custody, reception and transmission of orders (RTO) and trusted partnerships as the key pieces. Speakers include Bit2Me and Cecabank, along with the regulatory and tax perspective from Europe and Latin America.

What you'll learn

• MiCA licensing: what it means to be among the first to get the licence and why anticipating the regulator makes the difference
• Institutional custody: how a custodian bank brings its traditional quality and security to the world of digital assets
• The role of partners: why traditional institutions choose licensed crypto partners (API, custody, execution) instead of building everything in-house
• Tax and reporting: what changes with CARF and DAC 8 and why they widen the entities required to report beyond MiCA
• Towards MiCA 2: the gaps still to be regulated —DeFi, staking, stablecoins— and how Europe compares with the US

Session summary

From traditional to digital. For a custodian bank, entering digital assets is an evolution —not a revolution— started years ago, hand in hand with the regulator (Bank of Spain and the CNMV) and with the same quality and security as the traditional world. Understanding the rules (experience with MiFID I and II helps) and anticipating them are the big drivers.

A regulatory milestone. The panel highlights Cecabank as a Spanish financial institution that has obtained both the Bank of Spain registration and the MiCA licence, becoming ready to provide digital-asset custody to the highest standards.

Banks choose trusted partners. Traditional institutions look for partners, not vendors: someone with technology, a MiCA licence and a track record. Bit2Me, in the sector since 2015 and with its crypto API, has pivoted from volume toward compliance to support banks; over EUR 100 million flowed through its API in a single month. A Spanish retail bank, in turn, is preparing its crypto RTO and custody service for 2026, prioritizing its reputation.

Tax, reporting and the future. Tax-reporting and regulatory-monitoring tools help companies comply with frameworks such as CARF and DAC 8, which from January widen reporting obligations. Looking to MiCA 2, European regulators will have to address DeFi, staking and stablecoins to avoid losing competitiveness against the US.

Watch the full session

Watch the full panel on MERGE's YouTube channel for the debate on MiCA, institutional digital-asset custody and the future of traditional banking in crypto.

FAQs

What is MiCA and why does it matter to banks?
MiCA is the European framework that regulates crypto assets; heavily inspired by MiFID, it lets banks and institutions provide services such as digital-asset custody with legal certainty.

What digital-asset services do banks already offer?
Mainly custody and reception and transmission of orders (RTO), plus execution through licensed crypto partners, replicating the quality and security of traditional banking.

What are CARF and DAC 8?
They are frameworks for the exchange of tax information on crypto assets; DAC 8 requires more entities to report from January, widening the scope compared with MiCA.

What is expected from MiCA 2?
That it regulates what MiCA 1 left out —DeFi, staking and aspects of stablecoins— incorporating more principles of decentralized technology while keeping Europe competitive.