The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has told crypto firms in the EU to stop offering services that involve stablecoins that don't comply with MiCA, the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation. It also set a three-month deadline for dealing with exposures that already exist. Cointelegraph reported this on Oct 8, 2026.
There are two parts to what ESMA said. Firms should stop offering new services with these stablecoins. Holdings and positions they already have get a three-month window. The report describes this as ESMA urging firms to act.
The report doesn't say which stablecoins ESMA considers non-compliant or which firms are affected. It also doesn't say what happens to a firm that misses the deadline. It doesn't mention Bitget, Bybit, MEXC or OKX, and it says nothing about perpetual futures.
For someone who already holds a perpetual position, the report doesn't show any direct effect on funding rates, trading fees or liquidity on the four exchanges we track. The only question it raises is about collateral. If your margin is in a stablecoin and you trade through an EU-regulated service, it matters whether that stablecoin meets MiCA. The report doesn't answer that, so for now no direct effect has been shown.
Source: cointelegraph — ESMA gives crypto firms 3 months to exit non-compliant stablecoins