Revolut has appointed Georgios Vasiliou as chief executive of its Cyprus-based digital assets operation, replacing founding CEO Costas Michael who departed two months ago and will continue as board advisor. Vasiliou joins from Trading.com, the sister brand of retail broker XM, where he spent five years as chief executive having previously served as Chief Risk Officer. His background includes seven years at XM progressing from dealing desk positions to risk management roles.
The appointment reflects Revolut’s deliberate strategy of recruiting senior figures from Cyprus’s established brokerage industry while prioritising risk expertise for its crypto division. This approach comes at a critical regulatory juncture for digital asset providers operating across the European Union. The MiCA grandfathering period concluded in July, meaning crypto firms must now operate under the bloc’s unified regulatory framework or cease offering services. Revolut’s Cyprus entity secured early authorisation as a Crypto Asset Service Provider from CySEC and has positioned itself for MiCA compliance as the European Commission continues reviewing the regime.
By installing another experienced risk professional to lead its regulated crypto operations, Revolut signals that compliance infrastructure and risk controls remain central to its European expansion plans. For brokers and fintech firms offering or considering crypto services across EU jurisdictions, this hire underscores the heightened regulatory expectations under MiCA and the premium now placed on specialist risk management capabilities.
FXnCO Insight
As MiCA implementation intensifies, firms without dedicated crypto risk leadership may struggle to demonstrate regulatory readiness to supervisors across member states.
Source: Finance Magnates