The Central Bank of Ireland fines Coinbase Europe Limited €21.5 million

The Central Bank of Ireland fines Coinbase Europe Limited €21.5 million

A blow to Coinbase — and a warning to all participants in the European crypto market. The Central Bank of Ireland has fined Coinbase Europe Limited a staggering €21.5 million for serious violations of anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) legislation.

The Irish regulator found that over approximately 12 months, the company failed to properly monitor more than 30 million transactions totaling around €176 billion. This disciplinary action has become the largest in the history of virtual asset regulation in the EU and marks a new phase of strict oversight by European supervisory authorities.

What does this mean for VASPs and CASPs in the EU?

This precedent clearly indicates that EU regulators are no longer focused solely on the exchange of virtual assets. They are actively inspecting transaction monitoring systems, internal compliance procedures, reporting, and tools for detecting suspicious activity.

In particular, under the new MiCA regulatory framework, oversight of all crypto asset service providers (CASPs) is being strengthened. This means not only the requirement to hold the appropriate license, but also the development of a full-fledged AML/CTF infrastructure, comparable to banking standards.

How to avoid fines and liability?

Companies operating or planning to enter the European market must now bring their activities into full compliance with MiCA, and also consider alternative jurisdictions that allow flexible and legal scaling in the virtual assets sector.

FINANCEIQ HUB LTD offers comprehensive business support:

✅ Obtaining a MiCA license in the EU – full support from documentation preparation to operational launch.
✅ MSB license in Canada – an ideal option for companies seeking alternative access to the global market outside the strict EU framework.
✅ MSB license in the USA – the United States is now actively developing in the virtual assets space. This is a major market worth attention.
✅ Account opening (operational, client funds, merchant, liquidity providers, on-ramp/off-ramp) – for MiCA, MSB, FMSB, high-risk businesses, and more.
✅ AML/CTF system setup, internal audit, policies and procedures – everything needed to avoid sanctions from regulators.

Contact us today for a full consultation.