Europe

Greece crypto restrictions and exchange access

Greece applies the EU's MiCA rules through the Hellenic Capital Market Commission, so an exchange needs a MiCA authorisation to serve residents, while a tax on crypto gains is still a draft bill.

Available

of 22 platforms

Limited

of 22 platforms

Restricted

of 22 platforms

Regulators

Top exchanges by access score

Last updated 20 Oct 2026

Map of Greece and its neighbours with Greece highlighted, beside the 22 tracked platforms by status in Greece: 2 restricted (Gemini, HTX); 8 limited (Binance, Bitfinex, Bitget, Bybit, Crypto.com, Gate, KuCoin, MEXC); 12 available (Aster, Bitstamp, Coinbase, Hyperliquid, Jupiter, Kalshi, Kraken, Lighter, OKX, PancakeSwap, Polymarket, Uniswap). Right: 2 of 22 tracked platforms refuse Greece; 8 are limited; 4 firms are authorised or notified in Greece under MiCA; a draft bill would tax crypto gains at 10%, not yet law.

Is crypto legal in Greece?

Yes, through authorised providers. We found no Greek law that bans individuals from holding or trading crypto, and since the transition ended on 30 June 2026 a firm serving Greek residents needs a MiCA authorisation.

The EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) set the licensing rules. Greece applied it in law 5193/2025, published in Government Gazette A’ 56 on 11 April 2025, whose Part C names the Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) as the authority for crypto-asset service providers. Banks go through the Bank of Greece: ESMA’s register shows Piraeus Bank’s entry under the Bank of Greece together with the HCMC.

Before MiCA, firms were on a special register that the HCMC kept. Article 125, as amended by law 5259/2025, let firms on it carry on until 30 June 2026 or until their licence was granted or refused, and kept the register in force until the same date. ESMA’s list of transitional periods records Greece at 18 months from 30 December 2024, which gives the same end date.

Which crypto exchanges work in Greece?

Seven of the exchanges we track serve Greek users under a MiCA licence: Coinbase, Kraken, OKX, Bitstamp, Bybit, Crypto.com and Gate. Four are fully available; Bybit, Crypto.com and Gate are limited because they offer no derivatives here.

None of them holds a Greek authorisation. Each is licensed by another EU regulator and serves Greece on a passport, which is why the chart names the regulator that granted the licence. ESMA’s interim register carries the licence dates and lists Greece among each firm’s passported countries.

The same register lists four firms with Greece as their home state, read on 19 October 2026. The HCMC authorised BCASH on 30 June 2026 for exchanging crypto-assets for funds in Greece only, then Xenios Blockchain Group and Capital Wallet Greece on 22 July 2026. Xenios handles order transmission and passports to nine countries; Capital Wallet offers custody, exchange, execution and transfer services and passports to six. Piraeus Bank was added on 7 August 2026 through a notification to the Bank of Greece, covering custody, execution, order transmission and transfers.

Binance is not on the register under any name. Decrypt reports that it withdrew its application to the HCMC on 24 June 2026, a week after Reuters reported the bid would be rejected, and said it would apply in another EU state. The Wall Street Journal later reported, citing unnamed people, that ECB president Christine Lagarde helped block the bid; Greek regulators and the government deny any pressure.

Best crypto platforms for Greek residents

By our access score, Bitstamp and Kraken (each 8.0 out of 10) are the most open exchanges for Greek residents, with Coinbase and OKX (7.5) next. Aster, Hyperliquid, Jupiter, Lighter, PancakeSwap and Uniswap (8.0) are the most open DeFi platforms, and Kalshi and Polymarket also score 8.0, though we could not confirm that Greece allows them.

The score rates how fully a Greek resident can use each platform, not its fees or safety. It is computed from our data and moves when a row changes: access status (4 points), the share of the platform’s products open here (3), the licences we hold on file for Greece (2) and what our geo-access test saw from a Greek address (1). Nobody scores the maximum, because every licensed platform here serves Greece on an EU passport and none holds a licence booked to Greece. Platforms that refuse Greek users are not scored. The full method is on our methodology page.

Exchanges

Bitstamp
Best for Spot trading from a long-running EU licence
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Bitstamp Europe S.A. holds a CSSF MiCA licence from 15 May 2025
- Our test loaded the home page from a Greek address
Cons
- No Greek entity: served from Luxembourg
Read our Bitstamp report
Kraken
Best for Spot trading under an Irish MiCA licence
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Payward Europe Solutions holds a Central Bank of Ireland MiCA licence, passported across the EEA
- Our test loaded sign-up from a Greek address with no barrier
Cons
- No Greek entity: served from Ireland
Read our Kraken report
Coinbase
Best for A MiCA-licensed exchange with the widest reach
7.5/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
0.5/1
Pros
- Coinbase Luxembourg S.A. holds a CSSF MiCA licence passported across the EEA
- Greece is on its passport list in the ESMA register
Cons
- No Greek entity: served from Luxembourg
- Its Greek page says stocks and prediction markets are not available
Read our Coinbase report
OKX
Best for A global brand with a local EU site
7.5/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
0.5/1
Pros
- OKX Europe Limited holds an MFSA MiCA licence from 27 January 2025
- okx.com points Greek visitors to OKX Europe
Cons
- Served from Malta, not by a Greek entity
Read our OKX report
Bybit
Best for Spot trading only
6.9/10
Access
3.5/4
Products
2.4/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Spot is served by Bybit EU GmbH under an Austrian MiCA licence
Cons
- Bybit EU offers no derivatives
- Derivatives on Bybit Global are being wound down for EEA residents
Read our Bybit report
Crypto.com
Best for Spot trading in an app
6.3/10
Access
3.5/4
Products
1.8/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Foris DAX MT Limited holds a Malta MiCA licence from 27 January 2025
- Spot trading and the app are offered
Cons
- Derivatives are on its geo-restrictions list
Read our Crypto.com report
Gate
Best for Spot trading on a licensed EU arm
5.0/10
Access
3.5/4
Products
1.5/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
0/1
Pros
- Gate Technology Ltd holds a Maltese MiCA licence
- Spot trading is open to Greek users
Cons
- Gate EU offers no derivatives
- Our test showed a restricted-location message from a Greek address
Read our Gate report

DeFi

Aster
Best for Perpetuals from your own wallet
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Greece is not on its prohibited-jurisdictions list
- Its trading app loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Greece
Read our Aster report
Hyperliquid
Best for Perpetuals and spot on its own chain
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Not excluded by its terms
- The trading app loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Greece
Read our Hyperliquid report
Jupiter
Best for Solana swaps
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Greece is not named in its terms
- Its app loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Greece
Read our Jupiter report
Lighter
Best for Perpetuals from your own wallet
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Greece is not named in its terms
- Its trading app loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Greece
Read our Lighter report
PancakeSwap
Best for BNB Chain swaps and pools
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Not excluded by its terms
- The swap page loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Greece
Read our PancakeSwap report
Uniswap
Best for Swapping tokens from your own wallet
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Its terms bar only places under comprehensive US sanctions
- Our test loaded the swap app from a Greek address
Cons
- No licence on file for Greece
Read our Uniswap report

Prediction markets

Kalshi
Best for Event contracts, if it takes Greek users
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Greece is not on its restricted-jurisdictions list
- Its home page loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Greece
Read our Kalshi report
Polymarket
Best for Event markets with deep volume
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Greece is not on its blocked-countries list
- Its home page loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Greece
- One report lists Greece among countries where it is restricted
Read our Polymarket report

Which platforms block Greek users?

Two of the 22 platforms we track refuse Greek users: Gemini and HTX. Eight more are limited: Binance, Bybit, Crypto.com, KuCoin, Gate, Bitget, MEXC and Bitfinex.

Most exits trace to MiCA. Gemini closed every UK and EEA account on 6 April 2026. KuCoin EU has had trading and deposits suspended since 4 February 2026. Binance told EU users it would stop providing services after failing to secure a MiCA licence; from 1 July 2026 sign-ups, deposits and trading are closed while existing users can still withdraw. HTX’s user agreement bars all EU member states, and the EU’s Russia sanctions ban dealings with it from 23 August 2026.

Platforms that refuse or restrict Greek usersPick one to see what we found

Platform	Status	Type	What we found
Gemini	Restricted	Exchange	Closed every account on 6 April 2026; its sign-up page refused us from Greece
HTX	Restricted	Exchange	Its user agreement bars all EU states, and EU sanctions ban dealings with HTX from 23 August 2026
Binance	Limited	Exchange	No MiCA authorisation since 1 July 2026: sign-ups, deposits and trading closed, existing users can withdraw
Bybit	Limited	Exchange	Bybit EU serves spot only; derivatives on Bybit Global are being wound down for EEA residents
Crypto.com	Limited	Exchange	Spot is open; derivatives are on its geo-restrictions list
KuCoin	Limited	Exchange	KuCoin EU has had trading and deposits suspended since 4 February 2026, while withdrawals stay open
Gate	Limited	Exchange	Gate EU serves spot only; global Gate stopped taking EEA users in March 2025
Bitget	Limited	Exchange	No MiCA licence: Bitget EU applied to the Austrian regulator on 2 July 2026 and will serve the EU only once authorised
MEXC	Limited	Exchange	No MiCA licence, and ESMA lists it as non-compliant after the Dutch regulator’s decision of September 2025
Bitfinex	Limited	Exchange	No Bitfinex company is on ESMA’s register, yet sign-up stays open

Source: platform terms and notices, ESMA, EU Official Journal, verified 19 October 2026. What each site showed us is in the next section.

What our geo-access test saw from Greece

From a Greek address on 14 and 16 October 2026 we tested all 22 platforms we track: 2 refused us, 4 showed a notice or a redirect, and 16 loaded with no barrier.

An open page is not permission. Binance, Bitget, HTX, MEXC and Bitfinex all loaded although Binance has closed new sign-ups, Bitget has no MiCA licence and HTX’s terms bar the EU. The two refusals were Gemini (“Gemini does not currently operate in Greece”) and Gate, whose home page printed a restricted-location message. The four notices were Binance’s European regulatory information link, Coinbase’s note that stocks and prediction markets are not available, KuCoin’s suggestion to switch to KuCoin EU and OKX’s redirect to its European site. Polymarket and Kalshi both loaded. Swipe through the screenshots below; each card quotes the message the page showed.

Home page of Gate loaded from Greece: Greece: Gate refuses the visit with a restricted-location message — **What each platform showed us from here**Screenshots from our geo-access test, 14 Oct 2026 and 16 Oct 2026. Scroll sideways or use the arrows.

Who regulates crypto in Greece?

The Hellenic Capital Market Commission authorises and supervises crypto firms, with the Bank of Greece covering banks. The Hellenic Gaming Commission polices betting, and the tax authority AADE receives crypto reports under the EU’s DAC8 rules.

Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC). The securities regulator is the competent authority under law 5193/2025 and authorised BCASH, Xenios Blockchain Group and Capital Wallet Greece. It also kept the older special register of providers until 30 June 2026. Its own website refused our connection on 19 October 2026, so its warnings list is not covered here.
Bank of Greece. The central bank is the channel for banks that offer crypto services: Piraeus Bank’s ESMA register entry is a notification to it, dated 7 August 2026.
Hellenic Gaming Commission (EEEP). The gambling regulator keeps a blacklist of unlicensed gambling providers; its role in prediction markets is covered below.
AADE. The tax authority is Greece’s competent authority for automatic exchange of crypto-asset information, as covered in the tax section.

Which crypto products are limited in Greece?

Spot trading is the open product. Bybit, Crypto.com and Gate offer no derivatives to Greek users, and we found no Greek rule written for staking.

Product matrix for three platforms in Greece. Bybit: spot available, derivatives limited, overall limited; Crypto.com: spot available, derivatives restricted, overall limited; Gate: spot available, derivatives restricted, overall limited.

Derivatives. Bybit EU offers none, and EEA access to Bybit Global, which does, is being wound down. Crypto.com lists derivatives on its geo-restrictions list. Gate EU offers none, and global Gate stopped taking EEA users in March 2025.
Staking. ESMA’s Q&A 2067 says MiCA has no staking-specific rules; where a provider holds the assets or keys, staking counts as ancillary to custody and needs the custody authorisation, with the client’s explicit consent.
Prediction trading. Coinbase’s Greek page says prediction markets are not available there.

Are prediction markets legal in Greece?

We could not confirm that they are not. The Hellenic Gaming Commission keeps a blacklist of unlicensed gambling sites, but we found no decision naming Polymarket or Kalshi, and both loaded in our test.

The commission’s blacklist held 14,444 entries when we opened it on 19 October 2026, but its table loads by script and we could not search it, so a listing of either site is neither confirmed nor ruled out. We found no Greek bill, ruling or statement on event contracts.

One report points the other way. The Block wrote on 15 July 2026, citing a gambling-regulation institute, that Polymarket is restricted or blocked in a list of countries that includes Greece, without naming a Greek authority, date or legal basis. We treat it as a lead, not a source for a status.

In our data Polymarket and Kalshi are available at medium confidence: Greece is on neither platform’s list of restricted countries, and both home pages loaded from a Greek address. That is not permission under Greek law, and the position could change once the blacklist is readable.

How is crypto taxed in Greece?

Greece has no enacted tax rule for crypto gains yet. A Finance Ministry draft bill would tax individuals’ gains at 10%, with the first EUR 500 a year exempt, and is expected in parliament in November 2026.

The draft went to public consultation in early October. CoinDesk, relaying Reuters, reported on 8 October 2026 the 10% rate, the EUR 500 exemption and the plan to send the bill to parliament in November. TaxRevenue Times adds that consultation closes on 22 October 2026, that swapping one crypto for another would not be taxed, that staking, lending and liquidity returns would be taxed as interest at 10%, and that past gains could be declared within 12 months of publication without fines or interest. We could not find the bill itself, so these terms rest on those two reports, and the start date and the treatment of losses are not stated.

Until a law passes, the tax authority applies no crypto-specific rule. In decision 2407/2026 of 3 June 2026 it refused to treat EUR 620,323 from two bitcoin transfers in 2024 as exempt or specially taxed income, because the taxpayer had not shown a special regime or exemption applied.

Reporting is already law. Law 5301/2026 (Government Gazette A’ 74, 15 May 2026) transposes the EU’s DAC8 directive, makes reporting crypto-asset service providers send their users’ details to the tax authority and sets penalties for breaches. The directive applies from 1 January 2026, with the first reports due by 30 September 2027. Law 5273/2026 of 30 January 2026 also ratified the multilateral agreement for automatic exchange of crypto-asset information.

Working out the tax on a Greek crypto sale under the draftFor an individual, if the bill passes as reported

Step	Detail
Spot the taxable event	Selling for euros or other consideration would count; swapping one crypto for another would not
Work out the gain	Sale price minus cost, using average cost for successive purchases
Take the first EUR 500	A year’s gains up to EUR 500 would be exempt; the reports do not say how the exemption works above that
Apply 10%	Staking, lending and liquidity returns would be taxed as interest at the same rate
Declare past gains	Within 12 months of publication, without fines or interest

Source: TaxRevenue Times, checked 19 October 2026. The bill is a draft and may change.

Sources: Hellenic Republic (1: Law 5193/2025: strengthening the capital market, Part C applying MiCA (Government Gazette A' 56, 11 April 2025; text mirror), 2: Law 5193/2025, article 125: transitional period and the HCMC special register (text mirror), 3: Law 5301/2026: administrative cooperation in taxation, transposing DAC8 (Government Gazette A' 74, 15 May 2026; text mirror), 4: Law 5273/2026: ratification of the agreement on automatic exchange of information, crypto-asset reporting (Government Gazette A' 13, 30 January 2026; text mirror)), ESMA (1: Interim MiCA register: authorised crypto-asset service providers (CASPS.csv, read 19 October 2026), 2: List of MiCA grandfathering periods notified under article 143(3), 3: Q&A 2067 on MiCA and staking (20 June 2024)), Decrypt: Binance withdraws MiCA license application in Greece (24 June 2026), The Wall Street Journal: Christine Lagarde helped block Binance's foothold in Europe (18 September 2026, via To Vima), CoinDesk (1: Binance tells EU users it will no longer provide services after failing to secure a MiCA licence (26 June 2026), 2: Greece prepares to levy 10% capital gains tax on cryptocurrency (8 October 2026)), European Union (1: Regulation (EU) 2026/1848: Russia-sanctions package listing crypto-asset service providers (July 2026), 2: Council Directive (EU) 2023/2226 (DAC8)), Hellenic Gaming Commission: List of unlicensed gambling providers (blacklist), The Block: Czech Republic moves to block Polymarket over unlicensed gambling (15 July 2026), TaxRevenue Times: Crypto taxation at 10%: the draft bill (8 October 2026), AADE: Dispute resolution decision 2407/2026 of 3 June 2026 (text mirror), checked 19 Oct 2026.

Platform availability

Explore which exchanges and prediction markets are available in Greece.

Platform	Type	Spot	Derivatives	Staking	Status	Last verified
Aster	DeFi	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
Binance	Exchange	Limited	Limited	Limited	Limited	28 Sep 2026
Bitfinex	Exchange	Limited	Limited	Limited	Limited	17 Oct 2026
Bitget	Exchange	Limited	Limited	–	Limited	16 Oct 2026
Bitstamp	Exchange	Available	Available	Available	Available	19 Oct 2026
Bybit	Exchange	Available	Limited	Limited	Limited	19 Oct 2026
Coinbase	Exchange	Available	Available	Available	Available	19 Oct 2026
Crypto.com	Exchange	Available	Restricted	–	Limited	19 Oct 2026
Gate	Exchange	Available	Restricted	–	Limited	19 Oct 2026
Gemini	Exchange	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	17 Oct 2026
HTX	Exchange	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	20 Oct 2026
Hyperliquid	DeFi	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
Jupiter	DeFi	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
Kalshi	Prediction market	–	–	–	Available	17 Oct 2026
Kraken	Exchange	Available	Available	Available	Available	19 Oct 2026
KuCoin	Exchange	Limited	Limited	–	Limited	16 Oct 2026
Lighter	DeFi	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
MEXC	Exchange	Limited	Limited	–	Limited	17 Oct 2026
OKX	Exchange	Available	Available	Available	Available	19 Oct 2026
PancakeSwap	DeFi	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
Polymarket	Prediction market	–	–	–	Available	17 Oct 2026
Uniswap	DeFi	Available	–	–	Available	17 Oct 2026