EU CRYPTO REGISTER · GLOSSARY · LAST VERIFIED
What is a Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) and why does MiCA use one?
A Legal Entity Identifier is a 20-character alphanumeric code that uniquely identifies a legal entity engaged in financial transactions globally. It is issued under the ISO 17442 standard and managed by GLEIF. MiCA requires CASPs to have an LEI and uses it as the entity identifier in the ESMA register.
What is the exact legal definition?
The LEI is established under ISO 17442 and managed by the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF). MiCA does not codify the LEI in its own definitions but the ESMA register implementing technical standards mandate the LEI as the entity identifier. Source: GLEIF; ESMA technical standards on the MiCA register.
What does it actually mean in practice?
Why an LEI matters. A globally-unique identifier prevents the kind of mismatched-entity confusion that arose under pre-MiCA national regimes, where similarly-named subsidiaries of the same global brand could each register separately. The LEI maps each MiCA-authorised entity to a single global record at search.gleif.org.
What an LEI record contains. The entity's legal name, legal form, registered address, headquarters address, status (active/inactive), registration status (issued/lapsed), and where disclosed, the ultimate parent entity's LEI. The record is updated on issuance and renewal.
Cross-checking the ESMA register against GLEIF. Every CASP in the ESMA register is tagged with its LEI. A user can verify the corporate record by typing the LEI into GLEIF's public search and reading the underlying legal-entity record. This is the recommended cross-check for due diligence.
Maintenance. LEIs must be renewed annually. A lapsed LEI in GLEIF, paired with an active MiCA authorisation in the ESMA register, is a small but useful signal of process drift worth verifying with the entity directly.
Where do we see this in the public record?
| Example | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Format | 20-character alphanumeric (ISO 17442) |
| Authority | Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) |
| Public search | search.gleif.org |
| Renewal cadence | Annual |
What else do users ask about this?
Where can I look up an exchange's LEI?
Open the ESMA register, find the exchange's row, and copy the LEI into GLEIF's public search. The GLEIF record will show the underlying corporate details.
Can an entity have multiple LEIs?
No. Each legal entity has exactly one LEI. Groups have one LEI per legal entity (so a global brand operating five EEA subsidiaries has five LEIs, one per subsidiary).
What does it mean if an LEI is lapsed?
The entity has not renewed its annual LEI registration. The legal entity itself may still exist; the lapse is a signal worth investigating but not a finding.
Which sources is this entry based on?
- GLEIF - Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation
- ISO 17442 - Legal Entity Identifier standard
- ESMA Register and technical standards
- GLEIF public search
Glossary entries on The Crypto Register are sourced from primary legal texts (Regulation (EU) 2023/1114, ESMA guidelines, national regulator publications). They are not legal advice. Last verified .