Austria’s Regulator Slaps New Business Ban on KuCoin EU

Austria’s monetary regulator has prohibited KuCoin EU Change from conducting new enterprise, citing breaches of inner organizational necessities round Anti-Cash Laundering (AML), counter-terrorist financing (CTF) and the observance of economic sanctions.

The Thursday decision by the Austrian Monetary Market Authority (FMA) means KuCoin’s Vienna-based entity can not onboard new clients or conclude new contracts or merchandise inside present relationships till key compliance capabilities are “appropriately stuffed.”

Sabina Liu, managing director at KuCoin EU, advised Cointelegraph that two compliance professionals holding designated AML and sanctions oversight capabilities in Austria had “not too long ago departed,” and that such mobility was frequent in “any regulated trade.”

She stated that KuCoin had already begun recruiting “earlier than the discover was issued,” and had “voluntarily paused new consumer onboarding and sure buying and selling actions.”

Liu added that the matter remained “contained and restricted in scope,” and that the trade didn’t anticipate any “long-term structural affect on [its] European technique.”

KuCoin’s “compliance-first” Vienna hub

The transfer comes simply months after Austria granted KuCoin EU a Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) licence, permitting the Seychelles‑headquartered trade to passport crypto asset services across the European Union and European Financial Space. 

KuCoin has positioned Vienna as its European hub, appointing the previous London Stock Exchange Group executive Liu as managing director in January to guide its MiCA-era enlargement and pitching the bloc as a “regulatory-first” progress alternative. 

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Liu advised Cointelegraph that KuCoin remained “dedicated to working strictly inside the relevant supervisory framework,” and making certain compliance with Austrian and EEA regulatory requirements.

“Compliance is a long-term dedication,” she stated, including that “momentary structural gaps” had been being addressed via established remediation mechanisms.

The age of MiCA compliance

The FMA’s intervention exhibits how shortly MiCA-approved corporations can face supervisory pushback if their governance or staffing diverge from authorized plans, notably round AML and sanctions oversight.

Extra broadly, European regulators have warned that crypto asset service suppliers (CASPs) that fail to safe MiCA authorization earlier than transitional intervals expire in July 2026 must wind down their EU operations, with supervisors pushing for orderly cessations slightly than final‑minute scrambles. 

In France, for instance, the Monetary Markets Authority (AMF) has advised unprepared providers to plan for an orderly cessation of enterprise by mid‑2026 if they can not meet MiCA necessities in time. 

In Spain, the Nationwide Securities Market Fee (CNMV) has warned that crypto firms that fail to acquire MiCA authorization by the tip of the transition interval must cease providing providers within the nation.

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