Crypto.com fined $3M by Dutch Central Bank over ‘severe’ violations

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—by Protos Staff

The Dutch Central Bank revealed today that it hit crypto exchange Crypto.com with a €2.85 million ($3.1 million) fine after failing to register for two years, breaking money laundering and terrorism financing laws.

Crypto.com, registered as Foris DAX MT Limited, was fined by the Dutch Central Bank (DNB) on October 2, 2023, after it failed to register with the bank between May 2020 and November 2022.

This period of non-compliance from Crypto.com was described by the DNB as ‘very severe,’ and led to the bank increasing the fine. The DNB also considered the number of Crypto.com’s customers and its competitive advantage in the country as reasons to impose a larger penalty. 

Crypto firms must register with the DNB under regulations set out in the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing Act, abbreviated locally as WWFT.

Crypto.com attempted to reduce the fine by arguing the fine should reflect a violation of ‘low severity.’ It argued that the DNB could ‘at most’ fine them for failing to register on time, while claiming Crypto.com followed the objectives of the WWFT, maintained customer due diligence, and reported unusual transactions to Malta’s financial watchdog, the FIAU. 

Read more: Binance execs detained in Nigeria still being questioned over illicit fund flows

Crypto.com to appeal fine

The crypto exchange failed to mitigate the fine as the DNB upheld its decision, claiming Crypto.com “ran an increased risk of becoming involved in money laundering or the financing of terrorism.” It maintained its opinion that Crypto.com’s violations ‘are very serious.’ 

A Crypto.com spokesperson told Protos “We are disappointed and disagree with their (DNB’s) decision to fine Foris DAX MT Ltd and are actively appealing this decision.”

“Moreover, we have already addressed the concerns raised in a timely and transparent manner and received regulatory approval from DNB as a crypto service provider in July last year. We remain fully committed to collaboratively engaging with the DNB, and regulators around the world.”

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