Coinbase's UK entity fined $4.5 million for breaching financial crime controls

CB Payments Limited (CBPL), a UK-based entity within the Coinbase Group, has been fined £3.5 million ($4.5 million) by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for failing to comply with a regulatory agreement aimed at enhancing its financial crime defenses. Despite agreeing in October 2020 to halt onboarding high-risk customers until improvements were made, CBPL provided services to 13,416 such customers, facilitating transactions worth $226 million. The FCA discovered repeated breaches over nearly two years.

Coinbase stated its commitment to working closely with regulators to maintain compliance and security. This fine serves as a warning for firms to prioritize financial crime controls, according to crypto litigation lawyer Kate Gee.

Source: Reuters