Plasma a blockchain company building stablecoin-focused networks announced a major expansion in Europe to offer regulated payment services.
The firm said on Thursday that it had acquired a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) licensed entity in Italy, allowing it to legally handle crypto transactions and custody assets in the region. As part of its EU expansion, the firm is opening a new office in Amsterdam, Netherlands and has appointed a Chief Compliance Officer and a Money Laundering Reporting Officer.
The Italian unit was previously known as GBTC Italia and will be known as Plasma Italia SrL after the acquisition, while the new Dutch unit will be Plasma Nederland BV, a spokesperson told CoinDesk.
“The Netherlands is one of Europe’s most established payment hubs,” Adam Jacobs, Plasma’s head of global payments, said in a statement. “Growing our team and regulatory presence here gives us a path to own more of the payments stack, from stablecoin settlement to licensed financial infrastructure.”
The company also plans to apply for Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) status under the EU’s new MiCA regulation and pursue an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license. These measures would allow Plasma to exchange assets, issue cards and store customer funds under regulatory safeguards.
“By having control over a fully licensed payment stack, we can offer greater reliability and access to merchants, people and institutions,” Jacobs added.
Plasma has emerged as a fast-growing blockchain rail designed for global stablecoin payments, a potentially large market as crypto becomes increasingly popular for cross-border money movements. Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency with prices pegged to fiat money like the US dollar and can offer faster and cheaper settlements compared to traditional payment rails, supporters say. Stablecoins, currently a $300 billion asset class, could hit $4 trillion by the end of the decade as they become increasingly embedded in the global banking and financial network, a Citibank report said last month.
The Plasma chain attracted $7 billion in stablecoin deposits since its public launch just a month ago, becoming the fifth largest blockchain by stablecoin supply.
Plasma said it aims to use these licenses to power its stablecoin-based neobank dubbed Plasma One. By owning the full compliance stack, the firm said it can offer faster settlements, lower fees and fewer intermediaries, while keeping client funds segregated and protected under EU law.
“Our goal is to set a high standard for blockchain-native stablecoin infrastructure by securing the right licenses and owning the regulated stack end-to-end,” said Jacob Wittman, Plasma’s general counsel, in a statement.
UPDATE (October 23, 2025, 14:37 UTC): Adds the names of the new devices.
