Procedure for obtaining a license for trading in crypto assets in Bulgaria from the Financial Supervision Commission.

Procedure for obtaining a license for trading in crypto assets in Bulgaria from the Financial Supervision Commission. In connection with the entry into force of the latest amendments to the Public Offering of Securities Act (Public Offering of Securities Act ) , which implement the provisions of Regulation (EC) 2023/1114 [1] on crypto-asset markets, the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) is conducting a preliminary investigation into the activities carried out by the persons entered in the register under § 5, para. 3 of the Public Offering of Securities Act. The aim of the ongoing study by the Financial Control Commission (FSC) is to outline the circle of persons to whom the licensing regime will apply and to specify their development plans. The aforementioned campaign will provide a clear basis for the implementation of the licensing regime, to ensure predictability and transparency in the process, as well as sustainable development of the financial and crypto services market.

I. If your intentions relate to submitting an application for a license for a crypto asset service provider, we provide you with information regarding the necessary actions that should be taken before submitting the license application .

If you represent one of the crypto companies that still has a crypto license issued by the NRA, you are required to provide the FSC with the information listed below regarding the current activity of the company you represent:

1. Description of the services actually performed - those entered in the register under § 5, para. 3 of the LPA and other additional services provided to clients;

2. Do you carry out cross-border activity, including in which European Union Member States or third countries it is carried out, what services are provided and the number of clients to whom they are provided;

3. Is the company part of a group and what part of the companies in the group are engaged in the activities of the person under § 5, para. 3 of the LPCA;

4. Data on the annual revenues generated from the services provided with crypto assets (virtual assets) over the last three years, number of clients and volume of managed assets;

5. Data on the number of transactions carried out related to crypto assets (virtual assets), on an annual basis, as well as the average size (nominal value) of a single transaction;

6. Information about the financial instruments, money market instruments and crypto assets held by the company;

7. Information on whether classification of clients has been carried out (for example, professional and non-professional, natural and legal persons, etc.).

8. Information regarding the storage location of crypto assets (virtual assets) of the company and its clients. In the case of storage, the ownership of the storage of the reserves "pools of reserves" should be indicated, and if it is not its own, information about the custodian used should be provided;

9. Information about the company's marketing strategy, its implementation method and communication channels.

Please note that you must include an answer to each of the points listed. The lack of information will be considered an increased risk when performing the above risk assessment. In the event that the company does not collect and store data on any of the points listed, this circumstance should be explicitly stated to the FSC.

Additionally, you should keep in mind that the FSC expects the information provided under the above-mentioned points regarding the activity being carried out to correspond with the information that will be provided upon possible initiation of licensing proceedings.

In case there are objective circumstances that do not allow the submission of the data within the specified period, you should provide the information you currently have, specifying in the covering letter an additional period, no longer than 10 working days, within which you will provide the remaining data.

II. Information regarding the intentions to submit an application for a license :

The transitional period during which the activities entered in the register under § 5, para. 3 of the LPA are permitted to be carried out is until 1 July 2026 or until the issuance or refusal of a license, whichever occurs first. Pursuant to § 3, para. 2 of the Supplementary Provisions of the LPA, persons registered from 30 December 2024 until the date of entry into force of the law shall submit an application for the issuance of a license under Art. 63 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 within three months of the entry into force of the LPA, bringing their activities into compliance with the law and Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 within the same period.

In addition to the above, you should keep in mind that, pursuant to § 3, para. 3 of the PZR of the ZPKA, when transferring crypto assets, all persons entered in the register under § 5, para. 3 of the PZR of the ZPKA should apply Regulation (EU) 2023/11137

In this regard, it is necessary to perform the following legal actions within the above-mentioned period:

1. Declare whether you intend to apply for a license for a crypto asset service provider, including an estimated deadline for submitting an application.

You should keep in mind that the licensing process will take approximately 6 months, in view of which it is recommended that applications for a license be submitted no later than November 2025.

Please note that if, upon expiry of the applicable transitional period (respectively until 01.07.2026 and the three-month period for persons registered in 2025), a license has not been issued, the activity related to crypto assets should be suspended and the pending relationships with clients should be settled in a manner that does not harm the clients upon termination of the activity and does not provide for additional costs for these clients.

2. If you do not intend to apply for a license as a crypto asset service provider, you must explicitly state this fact.

III. Information required before submitting an application for a license to operate as a crypto-asset service provider :

In case you intend to submit an application for a license to operate as a crypto-asset service provider pursuant to Article 62(1) of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114, it is necessary, as a preliminary step before the official submission of an application, to submit initial information and documents to the FSC as follows:

1. Presentation of the management team and persons with equity/shareholding in the company, including CVs and other documents at your discretion.

2. A general description of the company's organizational structure and your key employees depending on the activities and services you will provide as a crypto asset service provider.

3. A brief presentation of the activity you intend to develop, including the types of cryptoasset services.

The Financial Supervision Commission will review the documents and information you have submitted and will contact you for a meeting to discuss the preliminary assessment and licensing options.

Please note that the information provided in accordance with the above is intended for a preliminary assessment of the main characteristics of your business and the provision of recommendations by the FSC, without this legal action being considered as the submission of an application under Art. 62, par. 1 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114.

1. In addition to the above, you must provide current contact details - e-mail and telephone number - as well as indicate a specific contact person with the FSC.

In connection with obtaining a license for trading in crypto assets , please contact the office "IUSAUTOR" , which has extensive experience in this field, by email: office@iusauthor.com or by phone at 0888915215.

[1] Regulation (EC) 2023/1114 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2023 on markets in crypto-assets and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 1095/2010 and Directives 2013/36/EU and (EU) 2019/1937