Kucoin told to halt new EU business due to compliance staffing shortfalls

Policy Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Kucoin told to halt new EU business due to compliance staffing shortfalls Austria's financial regulator said Kucoin EU must appoint an anti-money-laundering officer and deputy officer, as well as a sanctions compliance officer and deputy. By Ian Allison Feb 23, 2026, 10:24 a.m. Make us preferred on Google Vienna, Austria (EM80/Pixabay) What to know : The Austrian regulator said KuCoin EU no longer has suitable key function holders for anti-money laundering, terrorist financing compliance and financial sanctions roles. The FMA granted Kucoin approval under the Markets in Crypto Assets regime in November. Austria's financial regulator said it prohibited the European arm of KuCoin from conducting new business and onboarding customers after the crypto exchange lost key compliance staff just months after gaining a Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) permit to operate across the European Union. KuCoin EU no longer has key function holders in anti-money laundering (AML) and prevention of terrorist financing roles, according to a statement from the regulator , the FMA, which granted the license in November . The freeze will last until the firm appoints the necessary compliance reporting staff, it said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW Don't miss another story. Subscribe to the State of Crypto Newsletter today . See all newsletters Sign me up By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms & conditions and privacy policy . “The effective staffing of these key functions is a prerequisite for the orderly conduct of business," the FMA said. The exchange is "prohibited with immediate effect from concluding business relationships of any kind with new customers and from concluding new contracts or new products within the scope of existing business relationships until these key functions have been appropriately filled.” Kucoin said the positions are being filled as part of an expansion of the compliance team in Austria. "Our priority in Austria is to establish a governance framework that reflects the expectations of European regulators and the responsibility we carry toward the EU market," said Sabina Liu, managing director of KuCoin EU. "By investing in experienced local compliance professionals, we are reinforcing a compliance-first operating model designed for long-term stability and transparency." Austria has become a popular destination for crypto exchanges looking to passport into Europe via MiCA, with the companies including Bitpanda, Bybit and Bitget establishing bases in Vienna. When the license was granted, the FMA said the key functions of AML officer and sanctions compliance officer and their respective deputies were occupied in accordance with MiCA and the Financial Markets Anti-Money Laundering Act (FM-GwG; Finanzmarkt-Geldwäschegesetz). “According to the FMA’s knowledge, this is no longer the case,” the FMA said. KuCoin More For You SEC makes quiet shift to brokers' stablecoin holdings that may pack big results By Jesse Hamilton | Edited by Aoyon Ashraf Feb 20, 2026 The securities regulator has continued its Project Crypto work to make unofficial policy changes as it moved to let broker-dealers treat stablecoins as capital. What to know : The addition of a few lines in a frequently-asked-questions page on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission website may open up the use of stablecoins in capital calculations for U.S. broker-dealers. The agency is instructing brokers that they need only give their stablecoins a 2% haircut when calculating how much they can be used as regulatory capital. Read full story Latest Crypto News Bitcoin balances on Binance hit highest since November 2024: here's what it means 4 minutes ago Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin accelerates ether sales 9 minutes ago Bitdeer sold all its bitcoin to fund its move into AI data centers 26 minutes ago Circle Internet, crypto miners report earnings: Crypto Week Ahead 1 hour ago AI bot's tipping blunder hands $450,000 memecoin pile to X sad story poster 4 hours ago $61 million bitcoin whale liquidated on HTX as sentiment back at 'extreme fear' 4 hours ago Top Stories Bitcoin slides 5%, tumbling below $65,000 as whale selling grows and recent buyers lock in losses 8 hours ago Bitcoin ETFs bleed $3.8 billion in historic five-week outflow streak 5 hours ago Small investors are buying bitcoin. For a rally to succeed, the whales need to join in. Feb 21, 2026 Blue Owl liquidity crisis has investors bracing for 2008-style fallout — it could mean bitcoin's next bull run Feb 21, 2026 Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin proposes AI 'stewards' to help reinvent DAO governance Feb 21, 2026 How AI is helping retail traders exploit prediction market 'glitches' to make easy money Feb 21, 2026