Crypto exchange Kucoin will pay $22 million to the State of New York and cease operations for residents. The New York Supreme Court’s stipulation and consent order, filed on December 12, reveal Kucoin’s acknowledgment of operating an unregistered cryptocurrency trading platform. Kucoin falsely represented itself as an “exchange” without proper registration under New York State laws, dealing in securities or commodities.
The agreement mandates Kucoin to close all accounts of New York residents within 120 days and prohibit future accounts for state residents. Withdrawal access will be restricted within 30 days, allowing users 90 days to withdraw funds. Once recognized for its pro-privacy stance, Kucoin’s previous policy avoided Know Your Customer (KYC) or Anti Money Laundering (AML) compliance. The exchange only accepted cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals, limiting withdrawals from non-verified accounts to less than 5 BTC.
However, on June 28, Kucoin reversed its privacy policy, implementing mandatory KYC for all users. While the exchange blocked deposits from non-verified accounts and halted services after July 15, withdrawals remained operational. The settlement on December 12 reveals that some affected users were New York residents, leading to Kucoin’s agreement to cease operations in the state and pay the $22 million settlement.
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