Paybis Europe - Latvia's 3rd MiCA CASP & PSD2 licence

The Nature of the Event

On 12 May 2026, the Supervisory Committee of Latvijas Banka issued SIA Paybis Europe with two parallel licences — a full MiCA crypto-asset service provider (CASP) licence and a PSD2 payment institution licence. This is the third MiCA CASP authorisation case in Latvia following BlockBen SIA (2025-12-03) and Nexdesk SIA (2025-12-10), and the first instance in Latvia where a single entity has received both licences simultaneously. The official announcement was published on Latvijas Banka's website on 2026-05-13.

The MiCA CASP licence for SIA Paybis Europe permits the provision of six out of nine service categories under MiCA Article 75: (a) custody and administration of crypto-assets on behalf of clients, (c) exchange of crypto-assets for fiat money, (d) exchange of crypto-assets for other crypto-assets, (e) execution of client orders, (h) advisory services on crypto-assets, and (j) crypto-asset transfer services. The PSD2 licence permits the execution of payments and money transfers to payment accounts. Using the EU passporting mechanism, this combination allows Paybis to operate across 30 EEA countries (27 EU member states plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) by submitting only cross-border activity notifications to the competent authorities of the respective countries.

Company History and Structure

Paybis was founded in April 2014. The company was established by three individuals — Innokenty Isers (CEO), Konstantin Vasilenko and Arturs Markevich. In its early phase, it was an economically straightforward idea that would allow users to purchase digital assets using familiar payment methods with predictable pricing. Innokenty Isers had already accumulated more than 15 years of experience in online business during this period. Konstantin Vasilenko is also a co-founder of the Latvian Blockchain Association — this connection has helped shape Paybis's relationship context with Latvian regulators in recent years.

The company's global headquarters is located in Warsaw, Poland. The first Latvian branch (PAYBIS LTD Latvia branch, registration number 40203252348) was historically registered at Brīvības Street 171, Riga. Several Paybis group legal entities are registered in Latvia — PayBis SIA (40103916351), PAYBIS Latvia, SIA (40203305109) and now SIA Paybis Europe, which becomes the group's official EU centre with full MiCA regime authorisation. This new parent-subsidiary structure in Latvia structurally shifts the epicentre of EU operations from Poland to Latvia, whilst maintaining global management in Warsaw.

Funding model: Paybis publicly states that since 2014 it has not attracted external investors or venture capital funding — the company operates using internally generated cash flow. This distinguishes Paybis from most similar B2C crypto exchanges, which typically attracted institutional investors in their early stages. This funding structure gives the company independence from investor capital cycle pressures, but equally means that detailed balance sheets or annual financial statements are not publicly available — unlike the category of publicly listed exchange operators (Coinbase, Bitstamp), where market participants can assess capital adequacy from open documents.

Numerical Perspective: Growth 2023–2025

Available public data on Paybis's operational volume points to a consistent growth trajectory, albeit with certain structural imbalances.

The number of registered users at the end of 2023 was approximately 1.8 million across 180 countries. At the end of 2024, this figure had grown to 4.6 million. In Latvijas Banka's announcement of 2026-05-13 (citing company data), 7 million users are mentioned in total — suggesting that growth momentum remained sharp throughout 2025. In 2025 alone, 1.6 million new users registered, with an annual growth rate of +72.49% compared to 2024.

Trading volume metrics reveal a structural shift towards stablecoins. Total trading volume in 2024 reached USD 2.6 billion — an all-time high for the company. In 2025, the US market volume increased by +26.21% to USD 212.45 million. Particularly noteworthy is the USDT trading volume in 2025 — USD 1.09 billion with an annual increase of +423.93%. This stablecoin concentration aligns directly with Paybis's publicly announced strategic focus on stablecoin infrastructure in 2026. The number of B2B clients in 2025 increased by +372.22% to 340 new business clients per year.

Strategy Following MiCA Licence Approval

Co-founder Innokenty Isers publicly describes the new regulated position as the foundation for building a B2B2C white-label infrastructure stack. In practical terms, this means Paybis positions itself not as a direct retail exchange (despite maintaining its retail operations), but rather as an infrastructure service provider for companies unrelated to cryptocurrencies that wish to integrate crypto-asset services into their own products without establishing their own regulated structure. This stack includes: fiat ↔ crypto on/off-ramps, buy/sell/swap functions, payment acceptance, and stablecoin payouts — all through a single API.

This strategy sets Paybis apart from both previous Latvian CASP models. BlockBen focuses on token issuance services for the B2B segment. Nexdesk is a B2B OTC desk with direct integration into Nexpay IBAN infrastructure. Paybis Europe, combining MiCA CASP and PSD2 EMI under one legal entity, effectively offers the technical capability to combine crypto and fiat payment channels — something unavailable to the two aforementioned Latvian CASP licences.

In comparative EU context, Paybis's position is specific but not unique. Bitstamp Europe (CSSF, Luxembourg) and Coinbase Luxembourg (CSSF) already operate as regulated retail exchanges with full EU passporting. Unlike them, Paybis focuses on white-label B2B infrastructure — a segment where competitors include Striga (Estonia, pre-MiCA transition phase), Bitvavo for Business (Bitvavo NL B2B division), and Newrails UAB (Lithuania, under Article 60(4) framework).

Critical Perspective: Pricing, User Experience and Risk Factors

Despite successfully obtaining a regulated position, Paybis user experience in public sources reveals a structural critical point — high commissions, particularly compared to typical MiCA-licensed exchanges.

Pricing structure publicly displayed is as follows: service fee 0.49% with a minimum of USD 2 (with first purchase discount — 0% service fee); processing fee 4.5–8.5% depending on currency; network fee — automatic, based on current blockchain demand. Third-party aggregators indicate that total commissions start from 1.49% + 4.5% processing fee. These are combined, and the actual final price to the user typically reaches 5–10%, significantly higher than the typical regulated retail exchange 0.1–0.5% trading fee range (for example, Coinmotion, Northcrypto, Bitstamp). This pricing structure is typical for on-ramp/fiat-gateway type service providers — and Paybis itself has historically positioned itself as such a service rather than a traditional trading platform — yet the end user's commission remains structurally high.

User reviews on Trustpilot platform: overall rating is 4.1/5 with 30,000+ reviews, of which 77% have been awarded five stars. Customer support in reviews is consistently rated as quick and functional. Simultaneously, negative reviews repeatedly mention the following issues: very high commissions and spreads on exotic fiat currencies, withdrawal problems in some cases, verification delays, isolated account freezing instances, and price slippage at unsatisfactory rates. Independent review authors (Benzinga, 99Bitcoins, BitDegree) consistently rate Paybis as a "legitimate, but requiring user due diligence" service.

From a security perspective, there are no registered major Paybis hacks or data breach incidents in the public sphere since the company's founding in 2014. KYC and AML processes are provided using Sumsub infrastructure — this is an industry standard also used by several other MiCA-licensed CASPs. Average identity verification time is stated as 15 minutes. In 2024, Paybis added the Sumsub Transaction Monitoring system for automated suspicious activity processing.

Structural Risk Factors Remaining Open

Despite successful MiCA and PSD2 dual licensing, several structural questions remain unresolved following the 2026-05-12 announcement.

First, financial transparency. Paybis, as a privately-held, investor-unfunded company, does not publicly disclose detailed annual financial statements. Within the MiCA regime, a licensed CASP must comply with capital adequacy requirements (€250,000 or 25% of the previous year's expenditure for class 2 services), demonstrate client fund segregation, and maintain a functioning governance structure. Latvijas Banka, as the competent authority, has reviewed these elements during the licensing process; however, third parties (such as Trustpilot users or independent auditors) have limited ability to independently verify the capital position.

Second, ESMA competency guideline implementation by 2026-07-28. Paybis Europe, as a newly licensed CASP, is directly subject to ESMA35-24871704-2922 guidelines, which require documented staff training regimes, competency assessment procedures, and audit-ready evidence. The deadline is 76 days from this article's publication (15 May); a new CASP with a rapidly expanding B2B2C strategy faces substantial staff training and integration burden during this period.

Third, B2B2C white-label model and liability apportionment. The model in which non-crypto companies use the Paybis API to provide crypto services to their users raises questions about who bears MiCA liability for end users: Paybis as the licensed service provider, or the partner company as the distributor? Articles 60 and 75 of MiCA remain open to interpretation on this point, and ESMA's comparative review report for 2026 has flagged this as structurally unclear. This is a material question, particularly for the Paybis model.

Fourth, US and Canadian MSB licence scope. The Paybis group publicly states it holds Money Services Business (MSB) licences in the US and Canada. For a MiCA-licensed entity with global operations, US regulatory relationships (FinCEN, OFAC sanctions regime) remain a material structural factor. This is not a negative signal per se, but it adds an additional layer of complexity for a newly established EU entity based in Latvia.

Context: Latvia's Positioning and Next Steps

Paybis's third MiCA licence award structurally strengthens Latvia's position as one of the Baltic's most active MiCA hubs. Whilst the total licence count remains conservative compared to Lithuania's 6 licences, Latvijas Banka reported at the end of January 2026 that 5 additional MiCA applications are queued and 12 companies are in pre-licensing consultations. The three licensed CASPs—BlockBen, Nexdesk, Paybis—represent structurally distinct segments (B2B token issuance, B2B OTC, B2B2C white-label), positioning Latvia's market as a niche landscape with a small but differentiated cohort of operators.

Key structural milestones ahead: first, ESMA Interim MiCA Register CSV update within the week will add the Paybis Europe entry with Legal Entity Identifier (LEI). Second, ESMA competency guideline implementation deadline on 2026-07-28. Third, MiCA transition period close on 2026-07-01—after this date, any entity operating in the EU market must not offer services without full CASP licensing, which structurally increases demand for Paybis's B2B2C infrastructure services. Fourth, Latvijas Banka's report on 2026 Fintech Strategy progress—expected in the second half of 2026.

Sources

• Latvijas Banka — Two licences issued to SIA Paybis Europe (13.05.2026)
• LV portāls — Latvijas Banka issues two licences to SIA "Paybis Europe"
• Cointelegraph — Paybis secures MiCA and payment licences in Latvia for stablecoin services
• FinanceFeeds — Paybis secures MiCA and PSD2 licences from Latvia's Central Bank
• Crowdfund Insider — Paybis gains MiCA and PSD2 approval in Latvia