Singaporean-Founded Paymonade Clears Europe's New Crypto Regulations -- When Roughly 90% of Europe's Crypto Firms Fail

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Paymonade

16 Jul, 2026, 08:44 GMT

Damoon Technology (Europe) AG, trading as Paymonade, becomes one of just 280 firms authorised EEA-wide under MiCA as the bloc's transitional period closes

VADUZ, Liechtenstein and SINGAPORE, July 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Europe's crypto industry is undergoing one of the most drastic regulatory consolidations any financial sector has faced in recent years. Before the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation ("MiCA") took full effect, the bloc was home to an estimated 3,000-plus registered crypto firms operating under a patchwork of national regimes[1]. Following the close of MiCA's transitional period on 1 July 2026, only 280 firms hold full EEA-wide authorisation[2] — meaning roughly nine in ten previously operating firms did not convert, either exiting the European market, restructuring, or continuing to operate without a licence in breach of EU law[2].

Among the firms clearing that bar is Damoon Technology (Europe) AG, trading as Paymonade, which has been granted a MiCA licence by Liechtenstein's Financial Market Authority ("FMA"). The authorisation permits Paymonade to provide regulated crypto-asset services across all 30 states of the European Economic Area under a single passportable licence.

The threshold has proven high even for the industry's largest, most well-resourced players. Independent analysis of the public register indicates that only a small fraction of the world's 100 largest crypto exchanges by trading volume currently hold MiCA authorisation[3], and several major global exchanges, along with at least one of the world's largest stablecoin issuers by market capitalisation, remain absent from the register as of the date of this release[3].

Paymonade is a regulated fiat-to-crypto, and crypto-to-fiat, on-ramp and off-ramp infrastructure provider serving payment providers, fintechs, and cryptocurrency exchanges that need euro and other fiat currency settlement rails. With an annualized transaction volume run-rate of US$1.8 billion as of the first half of 2026, Paymonade ranks among the more substantial fiat on- and off-ramp infrastructure providers operating under the new MiCA regime — particularly among those serving institutional clients such as cryptocurrency exchanges, banks, and fintechs that require seamless, passportable euro and fiat settlement across the full EEA. Their key customers include some of the largest global crypto exchange platforms.

Paymonade is founded and led by Calvin Cheng, a Singapore citizen and former Nominated (appointed) Member of the Singapore Parliament who currently serves as Honorary Consul of the Republic of Serbia to Singapore. He has a track record in highly regulated fintech, including ownership of a Swiss digital asset firm admitted to VQF, a FINMA-recognised self-regulatory organisation, and is a founding shareholder of Longbridge Securities, one of Asia's largest online securities brokerages. Paymonade's authorisation adds a Singaporean-founded, Singaporean-led firm to a MiCA register still dominated by European and US-origin entities.

"The era of lightly regulated crypto is ending," said Calvin Cheng, Founder and Chairman of Paymonade. "Getting this licence over the finish line, at a time when the vast majority of firms in our industry have not, shows the strength of the institution we've built. We expect the next generation of leaders in digital assets to be firms that pair innovation with regulatory trust, and we intend to be one of them."

"Banks, fintechs and exchanges increasingly want one regulated infrastructure partner that can operate across the whole of Europe rather than negotiating market-by-market," said Milos Winter Bogdanovic, Chief Executive Officer of Damoon Technology (Europe) AG. "We are in active discussions with exchanges, fintechs and banks seeking compliant European fiat infrastructure."

Paymonade said it intends to double its European headcount over the next 12 months as it onboards new institutional clients, and to increase annualised transaction volume to CHF 6 billion per year by mid-2027.

— ENDS —

About Paymonade

Paymonade is the trading name of Damoon Technology (Europe) AG, a Liechtenstein-based regulated digital asset infrastructure provider specialising in fiat-to-crypto, and crypto-to-fiat, on-ramp and off-ramp, enterprise payment solutions and compliant crypto infrastructure. The company enables banks, fintech companies, payment providers and cryptocurrency exchanges to connect traditional finance with the digital asset economy through scalable and regulated infrastructure across the European Economic Area.

Website: www.paymonade.tech

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements regarding future business plans, growth objectives and market opportunities. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied due to various risks and uncertainties.

[1] Industry estimate cited in trade press reporting on pre-MiCA Virtual Asset Service Provider registrations across the EU/EEA; not an ESMA-audited figure.

[2] The public ESMA register recording all authorised firms is available for verification - ESMA interim MiCA CASP register, most recent update as of the date of this release: https://www.esma.europa.eu

[3] Based on independent tracking of the ESMA MiCA CASP register as of the date of this release; absence does not by itself confirm refusal, and status should be verified directly with ESMA before publication. Journalists are encouraged to consult the register directly for the current list of authorised and non-authorised entities.

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