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Flagship programme

Managing a Crypto-Asset Service Provider under MiCA

For aspiring managers, executive directors and members of management bodies. Over six months, you will work on a hypothetical application for authorisation under MiCA. The applicant plans to offer crypto-asset exchange and transfer services and is considering adding custody later. You will develop key parts of its three-year programme of operations and assess whether it has the people, capital and systems needed for the proposed services.

Curriculum

  1. Month 1

    Business Model, Programme of Operations and Authorisation

    You will follow the applicant's steps up to submission. For the first three years of operation, you will define the services to be offered, the target clients and markets, the delivery channels and the staff, systems and third-party providers needed. You will prepare answers to questions about the feasibility of the plan.

  2. Month 2

    Governance, Finance and Internal Control

    You will allocate decision-making powers and control functions and define what is reported to management. You will compare the management body's individual and collective competencies with the knowledge, skills and experience needed for the services in the application. You will explain how to document good repute and sufficient time commitment. You will justify three-year forecasts for volumes, revenue and costs and assess how lower volumes or revenue would affect capital and liquidity. You will decide when and how management should revise the plan.

  3. Month 3

    Crypto-Asset Operations and Client Protection

    You will trace exchange and transfer operations, reconcile client register entries against the custodian's report and propose action in response to delays, complaints or balance discrepancies. In a separate case study, you will consider the selection of a provider connected to a member of the management body and explain how to identify, manage and, where necessary, disclose the conflict of interest.

  4. Month 4

    AML, Sanctions and the Travel Rule

    You will assess whether controls are adequate for the risks associated with the firm's clients, services and markets. You will decide when an alert requires further review and how to document that decision.

  5. Month 5

    DORA, Third-Party Providers and Incidents

    You will assess reliance on a critical provider. During a simulated outage, you will decide which operations to restrict, whom to notify based on the available information and under what conditions to restore the service.

  6. Month 6

    Individual Management Project

    You will decide whether and when the firm can add custody. You will reflect your decision in the three-year programme of operations and update the competency matrix. You will identify the resources needed and any gaps in management's preparedness. You will propose measures, assign responsibilities and decide how to verify implementation.

Practical work, examination and certificate

You will present the key parts of the three-year programme of operations, the competency matrix and your written decision on custody. In the oral defence, you will justify the forecasts, your choice of resources and your response if revenue or volumes fall below projections. We also assess the individual and collective suitability of the management body, the management of conflicts of interest and measures to protect clients.

At the end of the course, you will take an examination to assess what you have learned. If you pass, you will receive a certificate with a supplement setting out the training hours, the assessment format and your result for each competency assessed.