# Nordic Law Advised Northcrypto on Obtaining a Payment Institution License

2026-06-18 — Max Atallah

Tags: fintech, MiCA

Nordic Law acted as a legal advisor to Northcrypto when the Finnish Financial Supervisory Authority (FIN-FSA) granted the company a payment institution (PI) license. The license complements the extension of Northcrypto's crypto-asset service provider (CASP) authorization under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA).

The PI license is required because e-money tokens (EMTs) are crypto-assets under MiCA but also electronic money. Services involving them may therefore also constitute payment services under the Payment Services Directive (PSD2). The European Banking Authority (EBA) addressed this overlap in its No-Action Letter published in June 2025. Under the streamlined procedure set out in the letter, the competent authority may rely on information the applicant has already submitted in its CASP authorization application, so the applicant only needs to provide updated information. Northcrypto's application was among the first PI license applications submitted under this procedure by a CASP in Finland.

Nordic Law's involvement was led by our Managing Partner Max Atallah and Partner Mikael Huhtala. Our strong fintech expertise enabled us to provide Northcrypto with sound legal advice throughout the process.