Revolut to remove Tether’s USDT for many European users as MiCA rules bite
Revolut has told affected customers it will phase out support for Tether’s USDT from eligible European accounts as the EU’s Markets in Crypto‑Assets (MiCA) rules come into force. The fintech giant is giving users a window to act — but the timeline is tight.
Key dates and actions
- Customers can buy USDT on Revolut until July 6.
- New USDT deposits will be blocked starting July 30.
- Users have until Aug. 31 at 12:00 PM GMT to sell, withdraw, or transfer USDT to supported external wallets.
- After that deadline, any remaining USDT balances in eligible Revolut accounts will be automatically converted to the account’s base currency at the prevailing market price, per Revolut’s delisting policy.
Revolut has notified impacted customers via app push notifications and email, and clarified the delisting applies only to users who received these notices. Jurisdictions where Revolut continues to support USDT will not be affected.
Why this is happening
Revolut linked the move directly to MiCA, the EU’s new regulatory framework that, as of July 1, imposes licensing, reserve, disclosure, and supervision requirements on stablecoin issuers and crypto service providers operating in the bloc. Tether’s USDT has not been authorized under MiCA, and Revolut joins other platforms that have started restricting EU access to the stablecoin because it lacks the required authorization.
Tether has pushed back. CEO Paolo Ardoino has argued MiCA’s reserve-related rules don’t fit the design of the world’s largest stablecoin, raising concerns about reserve composition, liquidity management, and redemption mechanisms.
Regulatory scrutiny beyond MiCA
MiCA isn’t the only regulatory pressure Tether faces. Following an OFAC update on July 1, Tether froze USDT balances in 131 wallets on the TRON blockchain after the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control added 134 crypto wallet identifiers (131 TRON and three Monero addresses) tied to ISIS‑K to its sanctions list. While that action is separate from MiCA, it underscored Tether’s capacity to freeze tokens in response to law enforcement and sanctions activity — a point of practical relevance for custodial platforms and users.
What this means for users and the market
Revolut’s decision highlights how MiCA is already reshaping which stablecoins European customers can access. For users holding USDT on Revolut, the immediate priorities are to sell, withdraw, or move balances before the Aug. 31 cutoff, or accept automatic conversion to their account currency. For the broader market, expect continued fragmentation as platforms reassess which tokens they can legally support across jurisdictions under new regulatory regimes.
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