European Union finance ministers have agreed in principle to transfer oversight of major crypto firms from national regulators to the European Securities and Markets Authority, aiming to close supervisory gaps created by MiCA’s passporting system. The Council agreed on a negotiating position, but legislation is not final and still requires talks with the European Parliament. Under the compromise, ESMA would directly supervise an estimated 10 to 15 firms and gain powers including inspections, investigations and fines.

The European Union is moving to introduce rules requiring data centres above a certain size to disclose their energy and water use, as AI drives a surge in demand for computing facilities. The European Commission proposed applying a common rating system to data centres with power capacity above 500 kW. The proposal is tied to the EU plan to triple data-centre capacity within seven years and could later underpin performance regulation.