Ibiza Tech Forum: Europe crypto shifts from MiCA to rails

The fourth edition of Ibiza Tech Forum ran May 19–22 across multiple south‑island venues, with a concentrated digital‑assets program on May 21 at the Caló de s’Oli Auditorium. That day featured two headline sessions that centered on the infrastructure required for on‑chain markets to handle institutional capital.

Jakub Dziadkowiec, an editor‑in‑chief, hosted a morning fireside conversation titled “On‑Chain and Unfiltered” with Evan Luthra and Yana Makhnyk. The discussion covered influence, capital flows and practical outcomes for Web3, including who controls capital and how communities and projects survive once short‑term attention fades.

A midday roundtable, “Redefining Financial Infrastructure: Stablecoins, RWA and the Next Global Markets,” brought together infrastructure builders and financial advisors: Sam Buxton of Damex, Víctor Sáez of Kraken, Nelson Enrique Moran of Trezora, María Sánchez of Reental, Erick Ortiz from BBVA and Christopher Siedentopf of CRS Advisory and Qapture Investments. Panelists identified specific requirements for market adoption, including settlement guarantees to reduce counterparty exposure, regulatory alignment to enable cross‑border operations, and robust processes for onboarding real‑world assets so tokenized instruments behave like tradable financial products.

Other May 21 sessions on the main stage examined the Markets in Crypto‑Assets regulation, known as MiCA, and how firms are adapting to its rules. A panel featuring MoonPay, Bit2me, Criptan, Bitvavo and Mandioca with legal counsel from Asensi Abogados discussed compliance and operating frameworks. A subsequent session titled “The New Financial Backbone” included representatives from Bitget, Bybit EU, the Solana Foundation, TradingView and FX Street and addressed how exchanges and data platforms integrate new compliance requirements.

The forum ran six thematic tracks-AI, Bank & Fintech, Smart Islands & Smart Mobility, Health Tech, Web3 & Blockchain, and SportTech-across Caló de s’Oli Auditorium, Romeos Hotel, Hotel Bonito Ibiza, Es Jardins de Fruitera and Cova Santa. The schedule paired daytime panels with structured social programming: a startup semi‑final at Romeos Hotel, a TradingView competition at Hotel Bonito, rooftop dinners, a networking lunch, a female founders session, a closing dinner at Cova Santa and a limited‑capacity boat trip to Formentera for senior attendees.

Organizers and on‑site teams reported roughly nine recorded interviews and more than 30 C‑level contacts developed during the forum. Named participants and contacts who attended or took part in discussions included Teresa Castagnino of Like Group Management; Yossi Goldsmith and Cristo Millar of IKAL; Iñaki Zubeldia and Mayte Clara of Yoseyomo; Oleg Morgunov of TradingView; Jordi Urbea of Ogilvy Spain; Javier Pastor of Bit2me; Georg Harer of Bybit EU; Daniela Herrmann of Dynex; and María Sánchez of Reental.

Panels and presentations on May 21 addressed technical and commercial questions for 2026 implementation: how to guarantee finality in settlement, how to standardize compliance across jurisdictions, and how to scale tokenization and custody for real‑world assets. A keynote from Dynex’s Daniela Herrmann examined potential impacts of quantum computing on financial infrastructure.

The event timetable was designed to keep senior operators on the island through the weekend, enabling extended in‑person follow‑ups after panel sessions.