The Dutch Central Bank fined the European division of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase $3.6 million for failing to register before providing services in the country.
According to the authority, Coinbase operated illegally between November 15, 2020, and August 24, 2022.
On September 22, 2022, Coinbase finally received the proper registration; nevertheless, the DNB claimed that during that period, the company had benefited from a competitive advantage by not paying supervisory costs.
According to the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing Act, businesses seeking to offer cryptocurrency services in the Netherlands must register with DNB.
The exchange “should not be punished for playing by the rules and engaging in this process,” a Coinbase spokesman told, adding that the DNB’s punishment was “based on the time it took for Coinbase to get our registration in the Netherlands and contains no criticism of our actual services.”
De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) said in a statement that the severity of the non-compliance led to an increase in the penalty from a base sum of $2.18 million.
Due to Coinbase’s stature as one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world and the volume of Dutch consumers it services, the fine was also raised. Over the past day, Coinbase has hosted more than $2.3 billion in volume, according to CoinGecko.
The cost was later decreased by 5% to reflect the fact that the firm had always intended to finish registration.
Now, the cryptocurrency exchange has until March 2 to contest the punishment. The spokeswoman stated, “While we recognize DNB’s right to enforce its rules, we are carefully reviewing the complaints and appeals procedure.”
Binance received a similar sanction from the Dutch authority last summer for providing its services there without a license.