Digital Assets & Web3 · EU · Practitioner
MiCA: Regulatory Overview and Authorisation
MiCA from the first question to the licence: what the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation covers, the three token families, white papers, becoming a crypto-asset service provider, the passport, and supervision and penalties. Seven modules, including a casework week, three case studies and a 15-question final exam.
- 6
- CPD hours
- 12
- Units
- 80%
- Pass mark
- EU
- Jurisdiction
Course specification
What you are buying
The CPD hours below are the hours printed on your certificate.
| CPD hours | 6 |
|---|---|
| Level | Practitioner |
| Units | 12 |
| Duration | 12 units · 6 hours of study, self-paced |
| Delivery | Online, self-paced |
| Assessment | 15-question final exam, 12 correct to pass, 25-minute timer |
| Pass mark | 80% |
| Jurisdiction | EU |
| Language | English |
| Prerequisites | None |
| Certification | Pnyx Hill Academy Certificate of Professional Achievement |
Learning outcomes
What you will be able to do
On completing this course you will be able to:
- Explain the three problems MiCA was written to solve.
- Apply the MiCA definition of a crypto-asset and its technology-neutral approach.
- Distinguish e-money tokens, asset-referenced tokens and other crypto-assets.
- Identify who must prepare, notify and publish a white paper for a Title II crypto-asset.
- Name the ten crypto-asset services and identify which a business model uses.
- Describe the passport notification procedure under Article 65 and its timeline.
- Identify which authority supervises each MiCA activity, in Cyprus and at EU level.
- Apply the perimeter, token-family, white-paper, authorisation, passport and supervision rules to practical files.
- Explain the Article 60 notification route for investment firms and its limits.
Curriculum
12 units, start to certificate
The case studies come before the final exam, so you apply the rules before you are tested on them.
M0 Welcome: Why Europe wrote a crypto rulebook Video
One announcement in June 2019 moved crypto-assets from the margins of financial regulation to the top of the agenda. This orientation explains what followed, how the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation is built, and how this course will take you through it.
- The why Three problems MiCA was written to solve.
- The four doors The map used in every unit of this course.
- The timeline From proposal to the end of the transitional period.
- The course Units, case studies, assessment and certificate.
About 25 minutes of study time
M1 The perimeter: what MiCA covers and what it leaves out Video · Quiz
Before any white paper, licence or passport, there is one question: is this product inside MiCA at all? This module gives you a repeatable way to answer it.
- The definition Value or right, transferable, on DLT.
- Exclusions Who and what MiCA does not touch.
- Grey zones NFTs, fractions and decentralised services.
- Neighbours Securities, e-money and payments law.
About 34 minutes of study time
M2 Three token families Video · Quiz
MiCA sorts every in-scope token into one of three families. The family decides who may issue the token, what must back it, how holders get their money back and who supervises it.
- TerraUSD What happens when a peg has no reserve.
- E-money tokens One currency, banks and EMIs only.
- Asset-referenced tokens Baskets, reserves and redemption.
- Significance When the EBA takes over.
About 33 minutes of study time
M3 Issuers and white papers Video · Quiz
For most tokens, MiCA does not authorise the issuer. It requires a disclosure document, sets the order in which things must happen and makes the people behind the document answerable for it.
- Who must publish Offerors and persons seeking admission.
- Exemptions Small, limited and free offers.
- The sequence Notify, publish, then market.
- Liability Who answers for the document.
About 32 minutes of study time
M4 Becoming a CASP: services, classes and the application Video · Quiz
A crypto-asset service provider’s authorisation describes the whole firm. This module explains the ten services, the capital that each requires, what goes into the application and how supervisors read it.
- Ten services From custody to transfers.
- Three classes Capital from €50,000 to €150,000.
- The file What Article 62 asks for.
- The reading How supervisors assess it.
About 32 minutes of study time
M5 Crossing borders: passporting, transition and reverse solicitation Video · Quiz
The passport is MiCA’s great prize. This module explains how it works, how the national transitional regimes ended, and why serving EU clients from outside the Union is far harder than it looks.
- The cliff 1 July 2026 and the wind-down.
- The passport Notify once, serve the Union.
- Cyprus How the transition worked here.
- From outside Reverse solicitation, narrowly.
About 30 minutes of study time
M6 Supervisors, powers and penalties Video · Quiz
Authorisation is the start of supervision, not the end. This module maps the supervisors, the powers MiCA gives them and the penalties that follow when a firm falls short.
- FTX (EU) A Cyprus licence suspended in a day.
- The map National authorities, ESMA, EBA.
- Powers From information to suspension.
- Penalties Fines, publication, removal.
About 30 minutes of study time
M7 Casework: the authorisation desk Video · Quiz
Everything in this course, applied to the files that land on a crypto firm’s desk in an ordinary week. Each file comes from a different part of the firm and draws on a different unit.
- Read the file Facts as they arrive.
- Make the call Choose before you read on.
- Read the analysis Why the answer holds.
- Check the basis The rule behind it.
About 32 minutes of study time
Case 1 The token that was three things Case study · Video
Three departments described the same token in three different ways. Each description pointed to a different legal regime. This case study works through how the firm found out, and what it changed before launch.
- The facts A term sheet and three memos.
- Three readings Utility, investment, e-money.
- The redesign One token, one classification.
- The launch White paper, sequence, marketing.
About 29 minutes of study time
Case 2 The application that came back Case study · Video
The file was long, the policies were signed and the capital was in the bank. The authority still came back with seven questions. Each one was about how the firm would really operate, and each one belonged to a different department.
- The applicant A Limassol firm in a global group.
- The letter Seven questions from the authority.
- The answers Department by department.
- The outcome A narrower start, a stronger file.
About 31 minutes of study time
Case 3 The investment firm that wanted crypto Case study · Video
A Cyprus investment firm already held a licence, a compliance function and a client base. It wanted to add crypto-assets. Its existing licence opened some doors under MiCA, kept others closed, and left one service with no door at all.
- The firm A Nicosia investment firm.
- Two doors Notification or authorisation.
- The mapping Which licence covers which service.
- The plan Notification, gaps and passport.
About 28 minutes of study time
Exam Final assessment · 15 questions · 25 minutes · 80% to pass 15 questions · 12 to pass
About 25 minutes of study time
Your instructor
Learn from an experienced industry practitioner
Instructor of record
Yiannos Ashiotis
- CPA
- CAMS
- CFSA
- MCSI
- CySEC AML-Certified
- CySEC Advanced-Certified
Chair of the Board and Co-Founder of Pnyx Hill. Advises regulated investment firms, credit institutions and asset managers across the EU, Cyprus and the UAE on licensing, governance and conduct-of-business obligations.
Instructor of record means he sets the content, exam and certification standard for every Pnyx Hill Academy course, and the certificate is issued on his authority.
Assessment and certification
A certificate that means something
The final exam pass mark for this course is 80%, rounded up to a whole question: 12 of 15 correct. There is no lower tier and no participation certificate.
The minimum on the final exam, rounded up to a whole question. Module quizzes are practice and are not graded, but each must be worked through to complete its module.
Sat online when you are ready; the timer is 25 minutes. You can retake it at no extra charge.
Issued as a PDF the moment the course completes, with your name and the date.
Every certificate carries a unique ID. Anyone you show it to, such as your employer or a supervisor during an inspection, can check it is genuine at pnyxhill.academy/verify-certificate.
CySEC continuing professional development
Built for your CySEC CPD record
This course is designed as continuing professional development under paragraph 17(2)(a) of the CySEC Certification Directive (R.A.D. 44/2019, as amended), for persons on the CySEC public registers of certified persons.
| Total duration | 6 hours of study, excluding breaks |
|---|---|
| Laws covered |
|
| Proof of completion | Every unit must be completed in full, and the course ends with a final exam at 80%. The certificate is issued only on a pass. |
| Trainer | Yiannos Ashiotis, Instructor of record |
Download the CPD evidence pack (PDF) Course outline, laws covered, duration, assessment and trainer profile — what CySEC asks certified persons to keep for five years, alongside the certificate.
CySEC does not approve CPD providers or courses, and Pnyx Hill Academy is not approved by CySEC. Certified persons remain responsible for confirming that a course meets their own CPD requirements. How CySEC CPD works
Who it is for
Built for the desks these rules bind
Everyone in a firm that is, or plans to be, inside the MiCA perimeter.
- Front office, sales and business development
- Product and marketing
- Operations and client services
- Technology and information security
- Finance
- Legal, compliance and risk
- The AMLCO or MLRO
- The board
No prior study is required.
Questions
Before you enrol
How long will the course take me?
The course carries 6 CPD hours, which is the guided learning time across the videos, the written notes, the module quizzes, the case studies and the exam. It is self-paced, so you can take it in one sitting or over several weeks.
Can I skip ahead through the videos?
No. A unit with video only completes once each video has actually been watched through — dragging the scrubber forward does not count — and each module quiz has to be worked through as well. That is what lets us put CPD hours on the certificate and stand behind them.
Who presents the videos?
Elena, an AI-generated presenter. The lessons are scripted, and the course content written and checked, by the instructor of record, Yiannos Ashiotis. Every video has English captions.
What happens if I fail the exam?
You can sit it again. There is no extra charge and no limit on attempts.
How do I get the certificate?
It is emailed to you as a PDF, attached, within minutes of the course completing. It carries your name, the course title, the 6 CPD hours and the date.
Can my firm enrol a team?
Yes. Choose "Enrol a team", pick the number of learners and name them at checkout. Each learner gets their own login and their own certificate. For more than 50 learners, a dedicated firm branch with completion reporting, or payment by invoice, talk to us.
Enrol in MiCA: Regulatory Overview and Authorisation
€ 210.00 for 6 CPD hours. Final exam pass mark 80%. Certificate when you pass.