The Dutch Central Bank has fined cryptocurrency exchange Binance €3.25 million for offering crypto services in the Netherlands without legally required registration. appealed the fine and is currently submitting a registration application to the central bank.
Binance fined by Dutch regulator
De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), the central bank of the Netherlands, on Monday fined Binance Holdings Ltd. for offering crypto services without legal registration.
The €3.25 million ($3.4 million) administrative penalty was imposed on the cryptocurrency exchange on April 25, the DNB said, elaborating.
The fine was imposed because Binance offered crypto services in the Netherlands without the legally required registration with the DNB. It is prohibited to.
The Central Bank stressed that companies wishing to offer crypto services in the Netherlands must register with it, as required by the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act. The registration requirement for crypto service providers was introduced in May 2020.
Binance was fined a Category 3 fine, the most severe of the central bank’s enforcement levels, “depending on the severity of the non-compliance and the degree of liability,” the DNB said. The regulator noted that the violations took place over a “long period of time,” from May 2020 to at least December 2021, and emphasized that DNB believes Binance’s “violations are very serious.”
DNB further explained that it also took into account Binance’s size and “very large customer base in the Netherlands.” However, the crypto exchange filed an appeal against the fine on June 2, the central bank revealed.
Binance has now applied for registration with the Dutch central bank. financial authorities.
Binance has been relatively transparent about its business operations throughout the process.
Because of the registration application and transparency, the fine imposed on Binance was mitigated by 5% lower, the central bank said.
Meanwhile, the crypto exchange continues to expand its presence in Europe. It received a license from a Spanish bank last week. Binance also launched a new platform for VIPs and institutional investors last month.
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