Panama crypto license 2026 — regulatory status
Panama has no crypto-asset law and no crypto regulator. The one bill that cleared the National Assembly was declared unconstitutional in full on 6 June 2023 over a procedural defect, so it never became law. Three replacement bills are filed and none has reached a first debate.
Last reviewed by the Crypto Law Index editorial desk
What the Panama crypto regime actually offers in 2026
Panama came close to a crypto-asset law and then lost it. The National Assembly passed Bill 697 — the Crypto Asset Law — in April 2022, with provisions on crypto assets as a means of payment, tax treatment, and a licensing framework for crypto-asset service providers. President Cortizo objected to parts of it in June 2022, and the Assembly re-approved an altered text. On 6 June 2023 the Pleno of the Supreme Court declared the whole bill unconstitutional (inexequible) for a procedural defect under article 170 of the Constitution; the ruling was published in Gaceta Oficial 29843 on 9 August 2023. The bill never became law, and the three bills filed since (PL 247, PL 326 and PL 454) have not passed a first debate.
In 2026 a crypto business in Panama rests on general Panamanian corporate law and the territorial tax system. There is no crypto licence or registration to obtain, and Ley 23 de 2015, the AML statute, does not list virtual-asset service providers among its obligated subjects. For operators, the right question is not whether to get a Panama crypto licence — there is none to get — but whether Panama makes operational sense as a Latin American base with no crypto-specific regulation.
What Panama's AML law does and does not cover
Ley 23 de 27 de abril de 2015 is Panama's principal AML/CFT statute. It contains no crypto terms and does not list virtual-asset service providers among its obligated subjects (sujetos obligados). No primary source settles whether a particular crypto business falls into an existing obligated-subject category, so that is a question for Panamanian counsel on the specific business model rather than a route this index can describe. The securities regulator SMV said in its April 2018 warning on cryptocurrencies and ICOs that crypto assets have no legal framework and are under no financial regulator's supervision, and that warning is still published.
There is therefore no crypto prudential capital requirement comparable to MiCA Annex IV, no conduct supervision, and no operational-resilience regime. Practitioners put the first-year cost of a Panama operation at USD 75,000–200,000, covering entity formation, local substance, and an AML compliance build; that is an estimate, not a regulatory figure.
When Panama makes strategic sense
Panama is not a licensing jurisdiction for crypto, because there is no licence. It gives no EU or US market access. It can make sense in narrower cases: operators whose principal customer base is Latin American; Spanish-language operations with regional positioning; a corporate-structure layer — holding company, IP-holding entity, or regional headquarters — alongside primary CASP authorisation held in the EU, UK, US, or Singapore.
Some operators build a Panama presence ahead of a successor bill. Bill 697 cannot be revived, and nothing indicates when or whether one of the three live bills will pass. For operators where none of these scenarios apply, EU member-state CASP authorisation, UK FCA registration, a US federal-plus-state stack, or Singapore MAS licensing gives a regulated status that Panama cannot.
Panama is the jurisdiction that came closest to a crypto-asset law and then lost it: Proyecto de Ley 697 de 2021 cleared the National Assembly, survived a partial presidential objection, and was then struck down in full by the Pleno de la Corte Suprema de Justicia on 6 June 2023 for a procedural defect under article 170 of the Constitution, leaving no crypto-asset statute, no licensing route and no authority that supervises virtual-asset service providers as such.
Fast facts
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Regulator | None — the securities regulator SMV has said since 2018 that crypto assets have no legal framework and no Panamanian financial regulator supervises them |
| Framework | None. Proyecto de Ley 697 de 2021 struck down in full by the Supreme Court, 6 June 2023, published in Gaceta Oficial 29843 |
| Current operational basis | Panamanian corporate law only; no crypto licence or registration route |
| AML basis | Ley 23 de 2015, which contains no crypto terms and does not list virtual-asset service providers as obligated subjects |
| Typical year-1 cost | Practitioner estimate: USD 75,000–200,000 (formation, substance, AML compliance) |
| EU / US market access | None — not an EU/EEA member (no MiCA passport); US-facing operators need separate FinCEN MSB + state MTLs |
| Corporate tax | 25% for resident companies; territorial system favourable to offshore activity |
| Best for | Latin-American customer focus or a corporate-structure layer alongside primary licensing elsewhere |
Top counsel for Panama CASP work
Firms below are ranked according to the published CLPAI methodology. Featured selections cover firms with documented Panama engagement, regardless of where they are headquartered.
Frequently asked questions about Panama CASP authorisation
Is there a dedicated crypto licence in Panama?
No. There has never been one. The bill that would have created it was declared unconstitutional in its entirety in 2023, so it never became law, and the three bills filed since have not reached a first debate.
Who regulates crypto-asset operators in Panama?
No authority does. The securities regulator SMV has published since 2018 that crypto assets have no legal framework and are therefore under no supervision by any Panamanian financial regulator.
What happened to Bill 697?
The Assembly passed it in April 2022, the President objected in part in June 2022, and the Assembly then re-approved an altered text. The Supreme Court held that procedure unconstitutional and voided the whole bill on 6 June 2023.
Does Panama provide EU or US market access?
No. Panama is not an EU or EEA member, so there is no MiCA passport. Operators serving US customers need separate US licensing — FinCEN MSB registration plus relevant state money-transmitter licences.
What is the AML framework for Panama crypto operators?
Panama's AML/CFT statute is Ley 23 de 2015. It contains no crypto terms and does not list virtual-asset service providers among its obligated subjects, so whether a particular crypto business falls into an existing category is unsettled and needs advice from Panamanian counsel on the specific model.
Pitfalls and nuances in Panama
1 Assuming Bill 697 is pending or revivable
It is neither. A bill voided for a procedural defect ends there; it can only be reintroduced as a new bill, which is what PL 247, PL 326 and PL 454 are. Marketing materials and consultant pitches sometimes describe Panama as having a dedicated crypto licensing framework as if the bill were fully enacted. In reality there is no crypto licence or registration, and operators rely on Panamanian corporate law.
2 Treating Panama as a passport base for EU or US operations
Panama produces no EU passport access and no US-market authorisation. Operators servicing EU or US customers need separate licensing in those jurisdictions. Panama suits Latin-American positioning or a corporate-structure layer — not a primary licensing jurisdiction for global operations.
3 Reading 'no crypto law' as 'no AML scrutiny'
Panama left the FATF grey list on 27 October 2023, and the European Commission announced its removal from the EU list of high-risk third countries on 14 March 2024, according to Panama's Ministry of Economy and Finance. The exit followed an FATF action plan that tightened AML rules. It did not create a crypto regime, and it does not make Panama a light-touch place for AML.
4 Skipping the AML programme because nothing requires it
No Panamanian authority licenses or registers crypto businesses, so an AML programme is a commercial requirement rather than a regulatory one. Banking partners and payment counterparties ask for a designated AML officer, customer due-diligence procedures, suspicious-activity escalation, and sanctions screening, and a business without them struggles to open and keep accounts.
Regulator and primary sources
No authority in Panama currently grants crypto-asset licences, so there is no application form to point you to. The nearest primary source is None. No Panamanian authority supervises or registers virtual-asset service providers as such.: supervalores.gob.pa. The legal position is None. Proyecto de Ley 697 de 2021 was declared unconstitutional in its entirety by the Supreme Court on 6 June 2023 and never became law. Three successor bills sit in the National Assembly, none past a first debate..