Crypto rules in Belgium.

The FSMA supervises conduct and investor protection. It assesses licences for crypto service providers, oversees information and advertising, and publishes warnings about fraudulent platforms and recovery-room scams that target victims a second time.

The National Bank of Belgium looks at soundness and stability: capital, governance and the risks banks run when dealing with crypto firms. Large stablecoins add European supervision by the EBA, while ESMA coordinates market and disclosure requirements.

Since 2023 Belgium has had a dedicated regulation on marketing virtual currencies to consumers. Advertising must be accurate and not misleading, carry mandatory risk warnings and avoid return promises. Mass campaigns must be notified to the FSMA in advance.

For readers that is a useful filter: a provider promising guaranteed profits, applying time pressure or hiding risk is ignoring a rule that explicitly exists in Belgium. Reason enough to stay away.

MiCA adds a European licensing duty with requirements on capital, custody, complaints handling and segregation of client funds. A provider active in Belgium therefore works with two layers: the Belgian conduct and advertising framework and the European licence conditions.

In practice that means stricter identification, clearer cost information and custodian liability for lost assets. What MiCA does not do is compensate price losses or create a guarantee fund like the one covering bank deposits up to EUR 100,000.

Start with the legal name in the FSMA register or the register of the supervisor that issued the licence. Then verify the enterprise number in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises and compare the address with the website. Finally, check whether the name appears on the warning list.

Watch the small things too: terms of service without an identifiable entity, payments to an account in a different name, or a contact point reachable only through a chat app. Those are the classic patterns of unlicensed operators.