European Parliament adds crypto assets to its wish list for the Commission's anti-corruption strategy

The Commission has 84 days from the October 8 vote to hit its end-2026 target ^[1][4][13]. Parliament's recovery request covers criminal proceeds in general. MEPs want authorities to be able to identify illicit proceeds, stop them moving and recover the funds once an investigation closes ^[8].

Stopping a token from moving takes the cooperation of whoever holds it. The EU's anti-money-laundering authority, AMLA, has already raised doubts about how much compliance capacity licensed holders have to spare ^[12]. Its chair, Bruna Szego, warned in July that firms leaving the EU market after MiCA's transitional period could see heavy withdrawals, and that licensed providers taking in new customers might struggle to keep their existing compliance standards ^[12].

If the strategy includes a crypto asset-recovery section that becomes legislative proposals, tracing and freezing turn into a real cost for those licensed providers. If it mentions crypto in a sentence and leaves the detail to the anti-money-laundering and MiCA work already under way, the October vote changes little for anyone's budget ^[9][11]. If it slips past the end of 2026, the question moves into the following year ^[4].

I think the middle outcome is the most likely. Crypto is one item on a long list of asks, alongside procurement, lobbying and political financing ^[6]. The counter-case rests on July. That resolution urged investigators to use blockchain technology to identify criminal transactions and to cooperate on blocking illegal transfers, and the Commission could treat it and Thursday's text together as a standing instruction ^[11][1]. It passed by 390 votes to 86 with 134 abstentions, so about 64% of the 610 members taking part voted yes ^[10][14]. The view is wrong if the strategy published by the end of 2026 names crypto-asset service providers in its tracing, freezing and confiscation measures ^[2][4].