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Blockchain.com has landed a conditional Virtual Asset Service Provider custody license from the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority, adding a third major regulatory stamp to a collection that already includes MiCA authorization in Malta and FCA registration in the UK.
For a company that launched in 2011 and now supports over 95 million wallets and more than 43 million verified users, the Cayman approval isn’t just a compliance checkbox. It’s a foundation for enterprise-grade custody services targeting institutional clients who won’t park serious capital without a regulatory safety net.
Three jurisdictions, one strategy
The Cayman license is the latest in a deliberate regulatory sprint. Blockchain.com secured its MiCA license from Malta’s MFSA on October 23, 2025, unlocking service expansion across the entire European Economic Area. That was followed by FCA registration in the UK on February 10, 2026, which authorized the firm to offer brokerage and custody services in one of the world’s most scrutinized financial markets.
The license was granted to Blockchain.com (Cayman) Limited, which is listed as a registered VASP on the company’s official licenses page.
The Cayman Islands implemented its full VASP licensing regime for custody and trading activities on April 1, 2025. Any crypto firm wanting to hold customer assets or facilitate trades in the jurisdiction now needs explicit regulatory blessing.
Blockchain.com announced physical expansion in the Cayman Islands on June 25, 2026, including hiring its first on-island employee and partnering with TechCayman to establish an office in Camana Bay.
The Cayman Islands as crypto hub
Blockchain.com isn’t alone in eyeing the Caymans. Crypto.com received its own conditional CIMA VASP approval on January 5, 2026, reflecting a broader pattern of established crypto firms locking down licenses in the jurisdiction.
The April 2025 licensing regime represented a deliberate pivot toward oversight and compliance, designed to attract legitimate operators while filtering out firms unwilling to meet institutional standards.
What this means for investors
Maintaining compliance across MiCA, FCA, and CIMA simultaneously isn’t cheap. Those expenses get baked into fee structures, platform margins, and ultimately the cost of doing business. Smaller competitors without the resources to pursue multi-jurisdictional licensing may find themselves squeezed out or limited to less regulated markets.
For traders and investors evaluating which platforms to trust with custody, a platform with conditional or full VASP approval from CIMA, MiCA authorization, and FCA registration operates under meaningfully different oversight than one running from an unregulated jurisdiction.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
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