Key Insights:
- Bitget EU appoints Oliver Stauber and establishes Vienna as the regional headquarters.
- The service begins once CASP approval has been granted, and EEA users can transfer to Bitget EU.
- The UEX roadmap introduces tokenized assets and aims to upgrade AI in 2026.
Bitget EU has appointed Oliver Stauber as chief executive of its European unit and confirmed Vienna, Austria, as the location of its regional headquarters, as the exchange prepares to operate under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA).
Bitget aligns its European activities to the MiCA regulatory framework.
The move forms part of the company’s regulatory alignment strategy for the European market, with Bitget stating that the new structure is designed to support compliance, governance, and supervisory coordination across the European Economic Area (EEA).
The company said Bitget EU will not provide services in the region until it secures authorization as a Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP), after which it plans to offer EU-compliant access to digital asset services across member states.
Stauber joins the European unit following his tenure as Managing Director and CEO of KuCoin EU Holding GmbH in Vienna.
According to the company, his appointment is intended to support the operational build-out of Bitget EU under the MiCA framework.
Bitget Chief Executive Officer Gracy Chen said in a statement that the appointment is linked to the exchange’s long-term strategy in Europe.
She said Stauber’s experience in regulatory and operational oversight will support the establishment of the EU headquarters in Austria and the implementation of governance structures aligned with MiCA requirements.
Bitget EU Leadership and Regulatory Structure
Under the announced structure, Bitget EU will operate as a broker rather than as a traditional exchange.
Stauber stated that the entity will act as the counterparty to all client trades while sourcing liquidity from multiple independent providers in accordance with best-execution principles.
This model is designed to create a distinct legal and operational framework for EU clients, separate from Bitget’s global platform.
He added that the user interface of the Bitget EU website will closely resemble the existing global platform. Still, the underlying legal structure will be aligned with MiCA, the European Securities and Markets Authority’s market integrity standards, and national conduct rules across member states.
The company also plans to deploy market surveillance systems to detect and prevent market abuse and other forms of manipulative or disorderly trading.
Bitget has verified that current EEA users on its international platform will be offered the option to move to the EU entity upon receiving regulatory approval.
The new framework will provide services that comply with EU regulatory standards, including risk management, transparency, and user protection.
Vienna Chosen as Regional Compliance Hub.
The company mentioned that the Austrian capital will serve as a center for compliance management, governance, structure, and supervisory coordination across the EEA.
The Vienna office, according to Stauber, is to assist in safe and efficient digital transactions by organizing risk management, open operations, and compliance with regulatory standards.
The headquarters will also serve as a coordination point for interactions with regulators and supervisory authorities within the EU regulatory framework.
Bitget stated that the European entity will begin operations only after receiving formal authorization as a CASP. Until that point, Bitget EU will not provide services within the region.
Interconnection With the UEX Framework by Bitget.
The European expansion is accompanied by the wider adoption of its Universal Exchange (UEX) model by Bitget, as described in a whitepaper released by Bitget Research Chief Analyst Ryan Lee.
The UEX model, according to the document, is organized around three main elements: asset universality, AI-driven intelligence, and a unified security framework.
The concept of asset universality refers to the ability to access cryptocurrencies and tokenized real-world assets, such as stocks, exchange-traded funds, commodities, and foreign exchange instruments, using a single account.
The intelligent layer is powered by AI and is meant to facilitate personalized trade execution. In contrast, the singular security system incorporates hybrid custody, real-time risk management, and a User Protection Fund.
The exchange has also facilitated direct token trading across the Ethereum, BSC, Base, and Solana networks without the need to maintain external wallets.
It has also added over 100 tokenized stocks and stock index perpetual products, and is 24/5 trading USDT collateral when approved by the jurisdiction.
The next step, phase 3 of the roadmap, involves adding new tradable assets, such as gold, foreign exchange products, and ETFs, with settlement in stablecoins.
Bitget also described its intention to renew its AI agent in the first half of 2026, enabling natural-language processing of complex derivatives orders and generating yield product subscriptions.
