Piotr Brewiński: “Europe Is Building the Foundation for FinTech Growth”

The regulation of the FinTech sector in Europe is entering a new stage, as the EU moves toward a unified legal framework where innovation and oversight evolve in tandem. In the exclusive interview for CoinsPaid Media, Piotr Brewiński, Board Member of the European Digital Finance Association (EDFA), Head of Legal at Fundacja Polska Bezgotówkowa, and Founder and President of FinTech Poland, shares his perspective on the shifting regulatory landscape, the future of the digital euro, and the development of both the European and Polish FinTech ecosystems.
The Regulatory Transformation of Europe’s FinTech Market
What would you highlight as the key legislative initiatives in FinTech that are currently under discussion or already being implemented at the EU level?
The European Union is in the middle of one of the most far-reaching regulatory cycles we have seen in financial services. MiCA, DORA, PSD3 and the PSR, FiDA, the AI Act, the Data Act, the EU Digital Identity Wallet, and the Instant Payments Regulation are all being introduced within a very short timeframe.
This creates a unique challenge for FinTechs. They should not only rethink their business models but also adjust their operations to ensure compliance with a wide range of new rules, each of which has material implications for how financial services are designed and delivered.
Adapting to this pace of change is demanding, but it is also intended to build resilience, enhance security, and lay the groundwork for a more innovative and integrated financial market in Europe.
Which of the initiatives mentioned above are likely to have the biggest impact on the European market in the coming years?
Several of these measures will shape the market, but MiCA deserves particular attention. Crypto-assets and tokenization are global by nature, and Europe’s decision to create a single regulatory framework makes it a direct competitor of the United States and Asia. MiCA not only provides clarity for businesses but also sends a strong signal that Europe intends to lead in setting global standards.
At the same time, the trend toward tokenization of services and the rapid deployment of new technologies present real challenges for market players, who have to be agile enough to innovate within this regulated space.
PSD3 and the Instant Payments Regulation will reset the competitive dynamics in payments, while FiDA has the potential to unlock the full promise of open finance. DORA, meanwhile, raises the bar on resilience, creating both short-term costs and long-term benefits in terms of trust.
How likely is it that regulation will slow down the development of the FinTech industry in Europe, or, on the contrary, create transparent and secure conditions for accelerated growth?
In the short run, regulation often feels like a brake. Compliance with DORA, the AI Act, or the Instant Payments Regulation requires significant investments and operational changes.
But looking ahead, I believe these rules will create the conditions for accelerated growth. MiCA is a good example. Compared to the more fragmented or enforcement-driven approaches in the US or Asia, Europe is offering a clear, harmonised framework for crypto-assets.
That could position European providers as global leaders, provided we manage to ensure consistent supervision across Member States and secure the trust of consumers in a market that has lacked both uniformity and safety.
If we succeed, Europe will not only avoid falling behind but could become the reference point for how innovation and regulation can reinforce one another.
How would you assess the attractiveness of the EU market for international FinTech companies today compared with other jurisdictions?
Europe continues to be one of the most attractive destinations for international FinTechs. The reason lies in the EU’s steady push toward harmonisation. Step by step, Europe is building a single market that can be approached as one, rather than as a patchwork of national regimes.
For foreign players, this means access to over 450 million consumers under a consistent regulatory framework. Collectively, the Member States represent one of the largest and strongest economies in the world.
Add to this the fact that Europe is also one of the safest and most stable markets — with strong legal protections and relatively predictable policymaking — and you have a market with both scale and trust.
Importantly, there is still significant growth potential, particularly in areas like digital identity, instant payments, and tokenized finance, where regulation is creating the space for innovation.
The Direction of the EU’s FinTech Ecosystem
The ECB is actively promoting the digital euro as an alternative to stablecoins. How do you view this approach?
The ECB’s work on the digital euro is at the preparation stage. The focus now is on drafting a rulebook and testing practical use cases with industry players.
I don’t see the project as an attempt to crowd out stablecoins or private innovation. It is more about ensuring resilience and protecting monetary sovereignty.
Whether the digital euro becomes a reality depends on political and legislative decisions, but for sure, it may not replace private solutions in the near term. It could become a foundational layer for the European payments ecosystem in the longer term, but the future will show how many of these plans will materialize.
Which areas, such as cryptocurrency products, payment solutions, digital identity, or open banking, seem most promising in Europe right now, and why?
Instant payments and account-to-account commerce are set to grow rapidly, driven by regulation that makes instant transfers mandatory. This opens opportunities in areas like request-to-pay, payroll, and merchant cost reduction.
Open finance, if FiDA is adopted in a broad and ambitious form, can unlock new products in credit, wealth management, and insurance.
Digital identity, through the EU Digital Identity Wallet, has the potential to transform onboarding, KYC, and e-signatures, with a major impact on customer acquisition costs.
Regulated crypto, enabled by MiCA, is another area where we expect to see banks and payment providers offering enterprise-grade solutions.
And finally, AI in financial services is becoming more scalable thanks to the clarity provided by the AI Act, which allows firms to innovate within guardrails that promote both trust and efficiency.
There’s a global trend toward integrating digital assets into FinTech products and BaaS solutions. How is this trend playing out in the European market?
In Europe, the integration of digital assets is moving from experimentation toward more structured and institutionalised models. MiCA provides clarity on stablecoins and custody, while DORA introduces strict requirements for resilience across chains of suppliers.
But one of the most dynamic directions we are beginning to see is the growth of partnerships between large service providers, including e-commerce platforms, and established financial institutions. These collaborations create the opportunity to combine scale, trust, and compliance with the agility of new digital solutions.
In the near future, I expect such partnerships to develop rapidly, offering customers seamless access to tokenised services embedded directly into everyday digital experiences, while ensuring that these services meet the high regulatory and security standards now set at the EU level.
We’d like to focus specifically on the platformization of financial services. How would you evaluate the current state and prospects of this trend?
Platformization is continuing, but it is increasingly shaped by regulation. Embedded finance and API marketplaces are expanding, but DORA ensures that risk governance and supplier oversight are at the centre of platform strategies. We can expect fewer but larger platforms, with more robust controls.
At the same time, PSD3, FiDA, and the Data Act are widening access to accounts and data while reducing dependence on individual cloud providers. This creates the conditions for a more resilient and competitive platform economy in European finance.
Poland in the Context of Europe’s FinTech Trends
What are the specific characteristics of the Polish FinTech market in the context of broader European trends?
Poland stands out as a leader in payments. The BLIK system has grown rapidly in mobile and in-store transactions and is now extending its presence cross-border. It is a strong example of how domestic innovation can scale and become exportable across Europe.
At the same time, Poland’s FinTech ecosystem is increasingly aligned with broader European trends in areas such as digital identity, open finance, and operational resilience.
What remains crucial, however, is the further development of a regulatory and supervisory environment that not only safeguards the necessary level of security but also actively supports the dynamic growth of modern financial services. Striking this balance will be key for Poland to fully leverage its strengths and continue positioning itself at the forefront of FinTech innovation in Europe.
Which segments of Poland’s local financial technology market are developing the fastest right now, and what’s driving that growth?
The most dynamic area remains instant and mobile account-to-account payments, with BLIK at the centre. Its growth is powered by strong distribution through banks and the network effects it has created.
RegTech and cyber-resilience are also developing quickly, reflecting the needs created by DORA and by the increased focus on supplier risk management.
Data and analytics are likewise gaining momentum, as companies prepare for the opportunities presented by the Data Act and the anticipated rollout of open finance.
In parallel, we are seeing growing activity in the crypto-assets space. The implementation of MiCA is creating the conditions for banks, payment institutions, and start-ups to enter this market in a compliant and scalable way.
This regulatory clarity is encouraging the development of custody services, stablecoin solutions, and tokenised products, which are increasingly attracting both institutional players and innovative technology firms in Poland.
There’s a growing narrative that Poland is becoming a FinTech hub for the region. Do you think this view is justified?
Yes, I believe it is. Poland combines several unique strengths that make this view increasingly justified. The country not only has a large domestic market and strong technical talent, but its economy has also grown to become one of the top 20 globally, standing out not just in Central and Eastern Europe but on the world stage.
Many global corporations have chosen Poland as a location for their service centres, which underlines the country’s reputation as a stable and competitive business environment.
At the same time, the financial services sector is expanding rapidly, and more mature Polish FinTechs are actively seeking opportunities to scale internationally.
The domestic FinTech ecosystem itself is already one of the largest and fastest-growing in the region, with strong momentum in payments, digital identity, RegTech, and increasingly also in crypto-assets.
Taken together, these factors give Poland all the attributes needed to position itself as a genuine regional hub for FinTech and a source of innovation for Europe as a whole.
Looking at the medium term, what’s your outlook for the European FinTech market overall?
The next three to five years will bring a new normal. Instant payments will become the default. Open finance will expand beyond payments into credit, wealth, and insurance.
Crypto-assets will be normalised under MiCA, giving the sector legitimacy it has long lacked. AI will be scaled responsibly within the guardrails of the AI Act. Consolidation will accelerate, with compliance-native platforms benefiting the most.
The risks lie in regulatory pressure on smaller players and concentration in supply chains, particularly cloud and BaaS providers.
But the upside is huge: by combining interoperable identity, data, and instant payments, Europe has the chance to build the most orderly and integrated embedded-finance market anywhere in the world.