99Bitcoins Exclusive: OKX Launches In Germany, Poland As Company’s Nordics General Manager Discusses MiCA Implications

Global crypto exchange OKX launched its fully regulated centralized crypto exchange in Germany and Poland on 17 June 2025. The launch comes after OKX secured a full Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license from Malta’s Financial Services Authority (MFSA) 0n 27 January 2025.

“Today’s a big day for us at OKX—and for crypto users across Europe,” the company said in its press release.

Furthermore, the company announced that the General Manager for Central Europe and the Nordics- Moritz Putzhammer – led the charge along with Gabriel Manduca as General Manager for Eastern Europe.

Participating in the Nordics Blockchain Association on 17 June 2025, Putzhammer discussed the implications of MiCA regulation.

Our very own Moritz @Bizzar0m0 took the stage at #nbc2025 alongside a solid lineup of panelists on institutional adoption. From Bitcoin, Strategy, stablecoins, custody, and security he covered it all.

The momentum shift is real across the Nordics. pic.twitter.com/tHSc5rZ2kF

— Mikael @ OKX (@mikael_OKX) June 18, 2025

The OKX General Manager for the Nordics thinks MiCA still has a long way to go, especially when it comes to stablecoins.

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“There’s still a lot of things that need to be cleared,” Says OKX Nordics GM Moritz Putzhammer While Talking About MiCA Implications

“I’ll share one example of how MiCA has affected what we’re doing with stablecoins at OKX,” said Putzhammer. “One of the strongest products that we were offering to our clients was a product on USDC – where you would get like eight or nine percent. Obviously, now we had to shut that down because there was a clear provision that you couldn’t provide interest to your customers on stablecoins – which I think, from a personal perspective, I don’t know if I would have needed the EU to protect the customer from earning interest on stablecoins. I think the motive behind it, everyone can make their own assumptions, but I think it was probably somewhere along the lines of protecting some of those who have traditionally provided interest to customers. That would be my, let’s say hot take or a spicy take on that. But I don’t know if that is true. So that’s a bit of an unfortunate thing.”

“There’s still a lot of things that need to be cleared out on that front,” he added, “but obviously from a very personal perspective, like everyone else, I am excited by stablecoins and what they provide, simply by having used them as a payment rails for my own personal and also professional transfers.”

“You don’t need to be on the same actual app as the other one who you would like to receive from or send stablecoins to. You just need to be on the same rails. This is possible through interoperability,” said Putzhammer. “It is extremely exciting to send some money to Australia within a couple of seconds.”

When asked about two topics that would be big next year, Putzhammer said RWAs and tokenized bills.

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“This is just the beginning”

This is more than geographic expansion for OKX. “We’re among the first global exchanges ready to meet the region’s evolving regulatory standards head-on,” said OKX. “We’re proud to be leading the industry in transparency with 31 consecutive monthly Proof of Reserves reports, and we hold MiCA licensing in Europe.”

In Germany and Poland, the company is offering access to deep liquidity, low fees, and over 270 cryptocurrencies, including more than 60 crypto-Euro pairs, all on platforms that are fully licensed, fully compliant.

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