CASP license in Poland

What is a CASP license?

A CASP (Crypto-Asset Service Provider) license is a type of authorisation required for businesses providing crypto-related services in the EU. In accordance with MiCAR provisions, companies offering services such as crypto-asset exchanges, transfers, and custodial services must go through a new type of licensing proceedings.

In Poland, this type of license is granted by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF).

Companies that are currently entered to the dedicated register as VASPs (Virtual Asset Service Providers) need to be reauthorized as CASPs (Crypto Asset Service Providers).

Who needs the CASP license?

A CASP license is required for businesses involved in at least one of the following activities:

• providing custody and management services for crypto assets on behalf of clients,
• managing a trading platform for crypto assets,
• exchanging crypto-assets for fiat currencies,
• exchanging crypto-assets for other crypto-assets,
• executing purchase orders for cryptocurrency assets,
• placement of crypto assets on the market,
• accepting and transmitting orders for crypto assets,
• providing advice on crypto-assets,
• managing a portfolio of cryptocurrency assets,
• providing of crypto asset transfer services.

Each of the aforementioned services has its own characteristics under MiCAR, and in order to provide them, dedicated requirements described in the regulation must be met.

Moreover, MiCAR is not the only regulation that CASPs must adhere to, as there are many other legal acts concerning anti-money laundering, consumer protection, and operational digital resilience. As of January 17, 2025, the regulatory focus is particularly on the requirements related to the DORA regulation, which our experts discuss separately in the context of the crypto industry.

Who can apply for a CASP license?

Under the MiCAR provisions, an applicant for the CASP license must be a legal person or other undertaking headquartered in the EU member state in which they carry out at least part of their crypto-asset services. In Poland, the types of companies that benefit from legal personality and can apply for the CASP license are:

• limited liability company (spółka z ograniczoną odpowiedzialnością), and
• simple joint-stock company (prosta spółka akcyjna)
• joint-stock company (spółka akcyjna).

An applicant for the CASP license must have its place of effective management in the EU, and at least one of its directors must be a resident in the EU. An applicant should also comply with diversified requirements regarding  its management board, shareholders, employees, as well as own funds.

In the latter aspect, the minimal capital requirements depend on the type of services to be provided and range from EUR 50.000 to EUR 150.000. 

It is worth to mention that, although not the most popular, joint-stock company allows one to benefit from simplified corporate governance and the ability to record and trade stocks using DLT systems. Group of Polish banks backed by the government have developed an API specification prepared for the purpose of digital access to electronic shareholder registers (SIRA Standard).
 

What does an application to grant a CASP license look like?

The procedure related to obtaining a CASP license before the KNF in Poland is a multi-stage one, and its commencement should be preceded by a detailed analysis of which specific crypto-related services an entity's activities qualify under.

Once such an analysis has been done, an application that includes a number of mandatory procedures and internal documents adopted in the company should be prepared. 

Examples of such procedures and documents include:

• business programme and financial plan;
• documents regarding board members and shareholders;
• description of governance and internal control mechanisms;
• description of the procedure for the segregation of clients’ crypto-assets and funds;
• technical documentation of the ICT systems;
• complaints-handling procedures;

In addition, some documents relate only to selected services, such as:

• custody and administration policy;
• description of the operating rules of the trading platform;
• description of the methodology for determining the price of the crypto-assets;
• commercial policy;
• execution policy.

What do the licensing proceedings look like?

Once the CASP application has been prepared along with all required attachments, it can be submitted to the KNF, which should assess its completeness within 25 working days. If necessary, the KNF will set a deadline for an applicant to submit additional documentation. If the application is complete, the KNF notifies the applicant about it.

From the moment the application is deemed complete, the KNF has 40 working days to issue a positive or negative decision. Notification of the completeness of the application does not prevent the KNF from being able to require the applicant to submit additional documents during the right application assessment phase, in order to clarify any doubts.

If the assessment phase has been successful for an applicant, the KNF issues a positive decision. It immediately allows the entity to begin its operations. However, if a brand-new CASP wishes to start operations in a country other than the one where the decision was issued, it will need to make additional notifications to the supervision bodies.

Length of CASP licensing proceedings before the KNF

In total, CASP licensing proceedings can take may take several calendar months in Poland. However, the duration of the licensing procedure with KNF can vary depending on several factors, including the completeness of the application, the complexity of the business model, and the responsiveness of the applicant to any additional information requests from the KNF.

Costs of CASP licensing proceedings

Under the currently debated proposal for the Polish Crypto-asset Market Act, the public fee for obtaining a CASP license is EUR 4,500.

Additionally, under Article 81(1) of that proposal, CASPs must pay an annual contribution to cover the costs of crypto-asset market oversight. This contribution depends on average value of crypto-asset service revenues over the last three fiscal years preceding the year for which the payment is due. A crypto-asset service provider shall pay the first fee for the year following the year in which it started to provide such services.

Transition from VASP to CASP

Another significant issue addressed by the proposed Polish legislation implementing MiCAR is the grandfathering period established for existing Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). According to the latest proposal of the Polish Crypto-asset Market Act (as of 8th May 2025), VASPs will be permitted to offer their services for 4 months from the date the Act comes into force, without the necessity of obtaining a CASP license. However, if a VASP submits an application for a CASP license within the first 3 months from the date the Act comes into force, they will be allowed to provide their services for an extended period of 9 months (counted from the date the Act comes into force).

Do non-EU entities need to obtain a CASP license?

From a geographic perspective, the determining feature of the need for a CASP license is to provide crypto-asset services in at least one of the EU member states. The MiCAR provides for the possibility of avoiding the need to obtain a CASP license in the case of entities registered in third countries and having customers in the EU, but only in the case of initiating the provision of the service exclusively by the customer (so-called reverse-solicitation rule).

The use of the reverse-solicitation rule is excluded in a number of cases, such as when there is a marketing impact on persons located in the EU, and is burdened by additional requirements. This problem has been addressed recently in detail by the ESMA (European Securities and Markets Authority) in its dedicated guidelines. In the event that a third-country entity influences the customer's decisions, it must establish a separate company in the EU and apply for a CASP license.

Osborne Clarke's services in a CASP license

At Osborne Clarke we comprehensively guide and support clients through the process of obtaining the CASP license in Poland, which includes:

• Initial analysis of provided services: assessment of the planned activities' compliance with applicable laws, identification of the services that require licenses and authorizations, identification of potential risks of future activities;
• Preparation of documentation: assistance in preparing the complete documentation required by the KNF, including the license application, business plan, financial plan, AML/KYC/DORA documentation, as well as other policies and procedures;
• Conducting proceedings: representing the client before the KNF, including submitting applications, responding to inquiries and collecting additional documentation, assistance in conducting live meetings with KNF officials;
• Ongoing compliance support after obtaining the license: advising on legal compliance after obtaining the license, including updating policies and procedures, employee training, conducting internal audits and negotiations with partners.