Europe

Spain crypto restrictions and exchange access

Spain applies the EU's MiCA rules through the CNMV, so an exchange needs a MiCA authorisation to serve residents, and crypto gains are taxed as savings income.

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 Spain and its neighbours with Spain highlighted, beside the 22 tracked platforms grouped by status in Spain: 3 restricted (Bitget, Gemini, HTX); 10 limited (Binance, Bitfinex, Bybit, Crypto.com, Gate, Hyperliquid, Kalshi, KuCoin, MEXC, Polymarket); 9 available (Aster, Bitstamp, Coinbase, Jupiter, Kraken, Lighter, OKX, PancakeSwap, Uniswap). Right: 3 of 22 tracked platforms refuse Spain; 10 are limited; the MiCA transition ended in Spain on 1 July 2026; crypto gains are taxed at 19% to 30% on the 2025 savings-income bands.

Is crypto legal in Spain?

Yes, through authorised providers. Spain regulates who may serve you, not whether you may hold crypto: since 1 July 2026 every provider needs a MiCA authorisation, from the CNMV or from another EU regulator.

The EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) sets the licensing rules, and the CNMV, Spain’s securities regulator, is the authority that authorises and supervises crypto-asset service providers, according to its MiCA page. The same page treats crypto as lawful but risky: prices are volatile, you can lose everything, and no compensation scheme covers it.

Spain’s transition for existing firms took a while to settle. The CNMV said in December 2025 that it would end on 1 July 2026, not at the end of 2025 as the regulator had announced a year earlier. Its 15 June 2026 communiqué then said that after that date only authorised providers may operate in Spain, and that firms without authorisation need a plan to migrate their clients. ESMA’s statement of 23 June 2026 told unauthorised providers to wind down in an orderly way.

Which crypto exchanges work in Spain?

Seven of the exchanges we track serve Spanish 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 is licensed by the CNMV. Each holds a licence from another EU regulator and serves Spain on a passport, which is why the chart names the regulator that granted it. The CNMV’s register lists these passported providers, and ESMA’s interim register carries the licence dates.

The firms the CNMV authorised itself are mostly Spanish and sit outside our platform set. The same register lists the exchange Bit2Me (Bitcoinforme, S.L.) from 31 October 2025, the banks BBVA and Kutxabank, and the crypto firms Criptan Trade, Crossmint Europe and Due Network. Binance, MEXC, Bitget, Bitfinex and HTX do not appear in the register at all, and their position is covered under the blocked platforms below.

Best crypto platforms for Spanish residents

By our access score, Bitstamp, Coinbase and Kraken (each 8.0 out of 10) are the most open exchanges for Spanish residents, OKX (7.5) comes next, and Uniswap, Jupiter, PancakeSwap, Lighter and Aster (8.0) are the most open DeFi platforms. No prediction market is fully open to them.

The score rates how fully a Spanish 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 Spain (2) and what our geo-access test saw from a Spanish address (1). Nobody scores above 8.0, because every exchange here serves Spain on an EU passport or has no licence at all, and none holds a licence booked to Spain. Platforms that refuse Spanish 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 Spanish address
Cons
- No Spanish entity: served from Luxembourg
Read our Bitstamp report
Coinbase
Best for A MiCA-licensed exchange with the widest reach
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Coinbase Luxembourg S.A. holds a CSSF MiCA licence passported across the EEA
- Our test loaded sign-up from a Spanish address with no barrier
Cons
- No Spanish entity: served from Luxembourg
Read our Coinbase 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 Spanish address with no barrier
Cons
- No Spanish entity: served from Ireland
Read our Kraken 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
- Our test sent Spanish sign-ups to OKX Europe
Cons
- Served from Malta, not by a Spanish 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
- Global Bybit, which has them, is being wound down for the EEA
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 for Spain
Read our Crypto.com report
Gate
Best for Spot trading on a licensed EU arm
5.5/10
Access
3.5/4
Products
1.5/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
0.5/1
Pros
- Gate Technology Ltd holds a Maltese MiCA licence
- Spot trading is open to Spanish users
Cons
- No derivatives: global Gate lists Spain as restricted
- Our test showed an EU-region notice at sign-up
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
- Spain is not on its prohibited-jurisdictions list
- Its trading app loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Spain
Read our Aster report
Jupiter
Best for Solana swaps
8.0/10
Access
4/4
Products
3/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Spain is not named in its terms
- Its app loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Spain
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
- Spain is not named in its terms
- Its trading app loaded in our test
Cons
- No licence on file for Spain
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 Spain
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 Spanish address
Cons
- No licence on file for Spain
Read our Uniswap report
Hyperliquid
Best for Perpetuals and spot on its own chain
5.9/10
Access
3/4
Products
1.9/3
Licences
0/2
Our test
1/1
Pros
- Perpetuals and spot loaded in our test
- Not excluded by its terms
Cons
- Its outcome markets tab is hidden from Spanish addresses
Read our Hyperliquid report

Which platforms block Spanish users?

Three of the 22 platforms we track refuse Spanish users: Bitget, Gemini and HTX. Ten more are limited: Binance, Bybit, Crypto.com, Gate, KuCoin, MEXC, Bitfinex, Hyperliquid, Kalshi and Polymarket.

Most exits trace to MiCA. Gemini closed every account in the UK and EEA on 6 April 2026. Bitget is on the list of countries its verification page does not serve, and it holds no MiCA licence. KuCoin EU has had trading and deposits suspended since 4 February 2026. Binance told EU users it would stop services after failing to secure a licence; its sign-ups, deposits and trading are closed and existing users can withdraw. HTX’s terms bar every EU state, and since 23 August 2026 EU sanctions on Russia-linked providers ban dealings with it, under Regulation (EU) 2026/1848. MEXC has no MiCA licence and ESMA lists it as non-compliant. We found no CNMV warning naming any of these platforms, though the warnings search did not return entries for us, so that is not proof there is none.

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

Platform	Status	Type	What we found
Bitget	Restricted	Exchange	On the list of countries its verification page does not serve, and no MiCA licence
Gemini	Restricted	Exchange	Closed every account on 6 April 2026; its sign-up page refused us from Spain
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
KuCoin	Limited	Exchange	KuCoin EU has had trading and deposits suspended since 4 February 2026; global KuCoin takes no new EEA users
MEXC	Limited	Exchange	No MiCA licence; ESMA lists it as non-compliant
Bybit	Limited	Exchange	Bybit EU serves spot only; derivatives are not offered here
Crypto.com	Limited	Exchange	Spot is open; derivatives are on its geo-restrictions list
Gate	Limited	Exchange	Global Gate lists Spain as restricted; Gate EU serves spot only
Bitfinex	Limited	Exchange	No Bitfinex company is on ESMA’s register, and Spanish persons are barred from its derivatives
Hyperliquid	Limited	DEX	Its app hides the outcome markets tab from Spanish addresses; perpetuals and spot load
Kalshi	Limited	Prediction market	Not on its own list, but the gambling regulator ordered its website blocked on 26 May 2026
Polymarket	Limited	Prediction market	Not on its own list, but the gambling regulator ordered internet providers to block it on 26 May 2026

Source: platform terms and notices, CNMV, ESMA, EU Official Journal, verified 17 October 2026. What each site showed us is in the next section.

What our geo-access test saw from Spain

From a Spanish address on 14 and 16 October 2026 we tested all 22 platforms we track: 1 refused us, 3 showed a notice or a redirect, and 18 loaded with no barrier.

An open page is not permission. Bitget, HTX and Binance all loaded their pages although Bitget does not serve Spain, HTX’s terms bar the EU and Binance has closed new sign-ups. Polymarket and Kalshi loaded too, even though the gambling regulator had ordered both blocked. The one refusal was Gemini (“Gemini does not currently operate in Spain”). The notices were an EU-region prompt at Gate, a suggestion to switch to KuCoin EU, and OKX’s redirect to its European site. Swipe through the screenshots below; each card quotes the message the page showed.

Who regulates crypto in Spain?

The CNMV authorises and supervises crypto firms and their advertising. The Banco de España supervises stablecoin issuers, the gambling regulator (DGOJ) polices betting and prediction markets, and the tax agency (AEAT) collects crypto reports.

CNMV. The Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores authorises crypto-asset service providers and publishes the register of those that may operate in Spain, per its MiCA page. Advertising is now governed by MiCA itself: the CNMV repealed its own advertising circular in December 2024, which ended the national prior-notice rule for mass campaigns. It can still require changes to an ad, suspend or prohibit it, and order a halt of up to 30 business days at a time, under article 247 of Law 6/2023 as quoted in a pending bill.
Banco de España. The central bank supervises issuers of asset-referenced and e-money tokens, per the CNMV’s page. It also ran the register of crypto exchange and wallet providers, which stopped taking entries on 30 December 2024 and was closed on 1 July 2026. Registration there, the bank says, implied no approval or verification of the firm.
DGOJ. The Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego, inside the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, licenses gambling and can have sites blocked; see the prediction markets section.
AEAT. The tax agency sets how gains are declared and collects reports from custodians and exchanges, as covered in the tax section.

The same bill, published on 27 July 2026 and moving through Congress under the urgency procedure, would update the MiCA sanction regime, make crypto-asset service providers subject to the anti-money-laundering law and create a CNMV register of them. We found no sign that it has become law.

Which crypto products are limited in Spain?

Spot trading is the open product. Bybit, Crypto.com, Gate and Bitfinex offer no derivatives to Spanish users, and prediction trading is barred on Hyperliquid and blocked on Kalshi and Polymarket.

Derivatives. Bybit EU offers none, and Crypto.com lists derivatives among its geo-restricted products for Spain. Global Gate, which has them, lists Spain as restricted, and Spanish persons are named as prohibited persons under Bitfinex’s derivative terms.
Stablecoins. Issuers of asset-referenced and e-money tokens answer to the Banco de España, per the CNMV, so a stablecoin issuer is licensed separately from the exchange that lists it.
Prediction markets. The tab is hidden by Hyperliquid’s location check from Spanish addresses; the legal position is below.

Are prediction markets legal in Spain?

Not without a licence. Spain’s gambling regulator treats prediction markets as games of chance and, since 26 May 2026, has had Polymarket and Kalshi blocked while a sanction case runs.

The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, which houses the DGOJ, opened the case against both platforms for operating without authorisation. Its reasoning is that betting on uncertain future outcomes is gambling and needs a specific licence, and it says the platforms lack identity, minor-protection and self-exclusion controls. The block applies nationwide as a precaution until the final decision. The case was notified through the official gazette after direct notice abroad failed, and the ministry estimated three to four months. We found no final decision by 17 October 2026, so the case is open. The release cites no article of the gambling law, and we found no Spanish bill that would licence prediction markets.

In our data both platforms are limited, not restricted: neither names Spain on its own list, and both loaded in our test, so the block is a regulator’s order against the sites rather than a platform exit. Hyperliquid, which runs outcome markets inside a wider product, hides them for Spanish addresses and is limited for that reason.

How is crypto taxed in Spain?

Gains on selling crypto are taxed as savings income, at 19% on the first 6,000 euros rising to 30% above 300,000 for the 2025 tax year. Swapping one crypto for another counts as a sale.

Spain taxes individuals’ crypto gains as savings income in five bands for the 2025 tax year: 19% on the first 6,000 euros, 21% from 6,000 to 50,000, 23% from 50,000 to 200,000, 27% from 200,000 to 300,000 and 30% above 300,000. There is no holding-period distinction, swaps of one crypto for another count as sales, and crypto held abroad is reported on Modelo 721 between 1 January and 31 March.

The tax agency’s Renta 2025 manual, updated 17 March 2026, treats a sale for euros as a capital gain or loss in the savings base, and says an exchange between two different virtual currencies also gives a gain or loss. Coins are matched first in, first out, even across exchanges, and gains go on the income tax return (Modelo 100). The agency’s savings scale for 2025 is 19%, 21%, 23%, 27% and 30%, with bands ending at 6,000, 50,000, 200,000 and 300,000 euros. The manual sets no holding-period rule, so a coin held for a day and one held for years are taxed alike. We found no change announced for 2026.

Two filings concern holders. Crypto held with a provider abroad is reported on Modelo 721, filed from 1 January to 31 March, according to the agency’s filing page; coins in a wallet where you hold the keys are not reported. Spanish providers report balances on Modelo 172. For the wealth tax, the euro balance of each coin is declared at 23:59 on 31 December, per the agency’s manual.

Reporting is due to change. The EU’s DAC8 directive applies from 1 January 2026, with providers reporting within nine months of year end, so the first report falls due by 30 September 2027. Spain’s transposing law has not come into force as far as we found, and a Hacienda draft order of March 2026 would scrap Modelo 173, rename Modelos 172 and 721 and add a new Modelo 175. It is only a draft.

Working out the tax on a Spanish crypto saleFor an individual, from the tax agency’s manual

Step	Detail
Spot the taxable event	Selling for euros or swapping one crypto for another gives a gain or loss; there is no holding-period rule
Match coins first in, first out	The coins sold are the ones bought first, across all your exchanges
Declare on Modelo 100	Gains and losses go in the savings base of the income tax return
Apply the savings scale	19% to 6,000 euros, 21% to 50,000, 23% to 200,000, 27% to 300,000 and 30% above (2025)
Report crypto held abroad	Modelo 721 between 1 January and 31 March; self-custody wallets are not reported

Source: agenciatributaria.gob.es, checked 17 October 2026.

Sources: CNMV (1: Regulation of crypto-assets: MiCA, competent authorities and the end of Spain's transitional period, 2: MiCA FAQ: the transitional period ends on 1 July 2026 (15 December 2025), 3: Communiqué on the end of the MiCA transitional period (15 June 2026), 4: Register of crypto-asset service providers that may operate in Spain (PDF list)), Banco de España: Note on the closure of the register of virtual currency exchange and custodian wallet providers (1 July 2026), BOE: Circular 1/2024 of the CNMV, repealing the crypto-asset advertising circular (27 December 2024), Congreso de los Diputados: Bill on the digitalisation and modernisation of the financial sector (BOCG, 27 July 2026), ESMA (1: Interim MiCA register: authorised crypto-asset service providers (CASPS.csv), 2: Public statement: unauthorised CASPs to wind down orderly as the MiCA transitional period ends (23 June 2026)), Ministry of Consumer Affairs: Consumer Affairs opens a sanction case against Polymarket and Kalshi and orders their websites blocked (26 May 2026), AEAT (1: Renta 2025 manual: buying and selling virtual currencies, tax treatment for the investor (updated 17 March 2026), 2: Renta 2025 manual: savings-income scale (updated 17 March 2026), 3: Modelo 721: filing period for crypto held abroad, 4: Modelo 172: information return on balances in virtual currencies, 5: Wealth tax 2025 manual: virtual currencies), European Union (1: Directive (EU) 2023/2226 (DAC8), 2: Regulation (EU) 2026/1848: Russia-sanctions package listing crypto-asset service providers (July 2026)), Ministerio de Hacienda: Draft ministerial order implementing DAC8: new Modelo 175 (March 2026), Gemini: Closing accounts in the UK, EU and Australia, KuCoin: KuCoin EU update (30 June 2026), CoinDesk: Binance tells EU users it will no longer provide services after failing to secure a MiCA licence (26 June 2026), Bitfinex: Derivative Terms of Service (6 April 2026), checked 17 Oct 2026.

Platform availability

Explore which exchanges and prediction markets are available in Spain.

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	Restricted	Limited	Limited	17 Oct 2026
Bitget	Exchange	Restricted	Restricted	–	Restricted	16 Oct 2026
Bitstamp	Exchange	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
Bybit	Exchange	Available	Limited	Limited	Limited	17 Oct 2026
Coinbase	Exchange	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
Crypto.com	Exchange	Available	Restricted	–	Limited	17 Oct 2026
Gate	Exchange	Available	Restricted	–	Limited	17 Oct 2026
Gemini	Exchange	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	17 Oct 2026
HTX	Exchange	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	20 Oct 2026
Hyperliquid	DeFi	Limited	Available	Limited	Limited	17 Oct 2026
Jupiter	DeFi	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
Kalshi	Prediction market	–	–	–	Limited	17 Oct 2026
Kraken	Exchange	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 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	16 Oct 2026
PancakeSwap	DeFi	Available	Available	Available	Available	17 Oct 2026
Polymarket	Prediction market	–	–	–	Limited	17 Oct 2026
Uniswap	DeFi	Available	–	–	Available	17 Oct 2026