Europe: insurers will have to cover their Crypto assets 100 %

The Eiopa strikes hard: insurers will have to cover 100 % the value of their crypto-active. A decision that upsets the situation. But not only! It also sends a clear signal to the markets.

A bulwark against crypto volatility

The European Authority for Insurance and Professional Pensions (EIOPA) is advancing a radical proposal. This consists in applying a 100 % equivalent capital requirement The value of cryptocurrency enrolled in the insurers' assessment.

Decryption: For each euro invested in cryptocurrency, one euro in own capital will have to remain immobilized.

This New Crypto rule far exceeds current standards:

• Actions require coverage between 39 and 49 %.
• Often perceived as risky, real estate is limited to 25 %.

By classifying the crypto assets at the top of the risk scale, Eiopa contrasts without ambiguity. It also justifies this rigor by the memory of the Krachs:

• -82 % for bitcoin;
• -91 % for Ethereum.

Faced with such tremors, no other asset class offers an equivalent comparison.

This measure therefore reflects a desire to align the regulations on The unique characteristics of cryptocurrencies. Extreme volatility, unpredictable price movements, absence of tangible fundamentals … These are all arguments to isolate them in the context of solvency II.

Why hit so hard now?

Today, the exhibition of European insurers to cryptocurrency remains marginal. With 655 million euros engaged (or less than 0.01 % of the 9,600 billion euros in assets in the sector), the risk seems to be content. Yet theEiopa Anticipate: Better to lock before the cryptos invite themselves massively in the wallets.

This preventive movement Mark a break: it is no longer a question of following the trends, but of supervising them at the source.

Two European countries concentrate most of the exhibition:

• Luxembourg (69 %);
• Sweden (21 %).

This targeted geography amplifies the effect of the proposal, by impacting jurisdictions already sensitive to the movements of the Crypto market. But beyond the figures, the message aims for the whole continent.

Launching A public consultation until June 25, 2025Eiopa opens the dialogue. However, she does not mask her intentions. Indeed, the organization wants to fill a regulatory vacuum and fully integrate crypto-actives into the European prudential arsenal.

Although the case subject to debate, the recommendation of the EIOPA fixes a clear CAP. Europe chooses rigor and prudence in the face of an unpredictable crypto market. Other regulators could soon follow the same path or take the opposite view. To follow …