Yesterday, Banking Circle — rooted in Danish Saxo Bank since 2013 — received its third European licence, a CASP licence under MiCA, and is now the only operator in Luxembourg holding a banking licence, an EMT licence and a CASP licence under one roof.
Banking Circle occupies a relatively uncrowded intersection between traditional finance, fintech and crypto, operating as what many call "layer zero": the invisible regulated backbone that fintech companies build on, without competing with them. One example is Danish fintech company Januar, which offers crypto-friendly IBAN accounts to European crypto businesses and uses Banking Circle as its underlying banking infrastructure.
Today, Banking Circle processes over one trillion euros in payment volume annually and serves more than 700 financial institutions — among them Stripe, Alibaba and Paysafe.
Banking Circle has deep roots in the Nordics. The company was incubated in Saxo Bank's offices in Copenhagen under the name Saxo Payments by Anders la Cour — a Danish lawyer with a background in technology and M&A law, who remains CEO of Banking Circle Group to this day. The idea was to replace the costly network of correspondent banks with direct infrastructure for fintech companies and financial institutions.
A CASP licence under MiCA grants the right to offer crypto-asset services across all 27 EU member states. This includes custody and administration of crypto-assets, operation of a trading platform, exchange between crypto-assets and fiat, order execution and transfer services. The EMT licence was granted in August 2024 and used to launch EURI — a bank-backed stablecoin.
With a banking licence, the company has direct access to central bank clearing systems — setting it apart from pure fintech operators. At the same time, its infrastructure is API-first and cloud native, distinguishing it from traditional commercial banks. The CASP licence now completes the picture.
