Cardano Foundation Opposes MiCA Expansion Into Direct Staking

The Cardano Foundation has opposed expanding MiCA or creating separate EU regulatory regimes for direct staking and decentralized finance. Its October 21 update outlines a consultation response submitted on September 30, 2026, citing Cardano’s delegation model as an example of participation in blockchain infrastructure. MiCA, the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, sets EU rules for certain crypto-asset issuers and service providers.

ADA Staking Leaves Assets Under Holder Control

Cardano users delegate their stake to a pool through a wallet they control. The operator maintains infrastructure that produces blocks, while delegated ADA remains available to its owner. Tokens can be spent or transferred without asking the operator to return them.

Delegation supports network security without requiring holders to operate a node. Rewards are distributed under the protocol’s rules in connection with block production.

The Foundation recommends treating this participation separately from services in which an intermediary holds client assets or decides how to deploy them. Those services may already fall under existing regulation, depending on their functions.

DeFi Oversight Based on Actual Control

The submission proposes assessing whether an identifiable person or group can control assets, intervene in transactions, pause an application, or change its core functionality. Concentrated governance power would also matter where it creates effective control over a service.

Open-source code alone would not establish decentralization. Infrastructure developers, however, should not automatically inherit obligations arising from financial services that independent teams build using their software.

Existing guidance already addresses fully decentralized services. In an answer published by the European Securities and Markets Authority, the European Commission explains that crypto-asset services delivered without an intermediary in a fully decentralized manner fall outside MiCA. National authorities assess whether a platform meets that condition case by case.

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Consistent MiCA Supervision Across the EU

The Foundation also calls for comparable activities to receive consistent treatment across EU member states. Its response warns that divergent national interpretations can increase legal and compliance costs, placing smaller businesses at a disadvantage.

It recommends common guidance and more consistent authorization and supervision, rather than additional national requirements that fragment the single market.

The submission changes no legal obligations. The requested staking guidance would distinguish running a pool or enabling delegation through a wallet from taking custody of client assets or deciding how to deploy them.