Malta’s financial watchdog slapped cryptocurrency exchange OKX with a €1.1 million ($1.2 million) fine for major anti-money laundering failures. The April 2023 compliance check revealed six serious AML violations, including insufficient customer risk assessments and failure to monitor transactions over $20 million. Despite recent compliance upgrades, OKX couldn’t escape penalties for its systematic oversights. The exchange’s troubles don’t end here, with regulatory headaches spanning from Thailand to the United States.
OKX, a major cryptocurrency exchange, got slapped with a hefty €1.1 million ($1.2 million) fine from Malta’s financial watchdog for botching its anti-money laundering controls. The smackdown came after an April 2023 compliance check revealed some seriously sloppy practices at the crypto giant.
The Malta Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) didn’t pull any punches. They found OKX‘s customer risk assessments were about as thorough as a teenager’s room cleaning – with roughly half of all reviewed files showing inadequate scrutiny. The exchange violated six AML guidelines during their operations. The review uncovered serious and systemic breaches of AML regulations.
Even worse, the exchange somehow managed to overlook proper monitoring of transactions exceeding $20 million. Talk about missing the elephant in the room. Similar to the Operation Crypto Runner investigations, these oversights highlight the growing scrutiny of cryptocurrency transactions by regulatory authorities.
OKX fumbled the ball on monitoring $20M+ transactions, proving even crypto giants can miss glaring red flags in plain sight.
Adding to OKX’s headaches, European regulators were already eyeing the exchange for allegedly helping launder $100 million from the Bybit hack. Bybit’s CEO pointed fingers at OKX’s Web3 proxy as the laundering tool of choice, though OKX quickly denied these claims.
In damage control mode, they temporarily pulled the plug on their decentralized exchange aggregator service.
The timing couldn’t be more awkward. OKX had just snagged a coveted MiCA license in January 2025, making them one of the first exchanges to operate under the European Union’s new crypto framework.
But past sins have a way of catching up – despite recent improvements in their compliance program, the FIAU wasn’t about to let historical failures slide.
This Malta mess isn’t OKX’s only regulatory rodeo. They’re facing a $500 million penalty in the U.S. and legal troubles in Thailand for operating without proper licenses.
The exchange has since rolled out enhanced monitoring systems and technology upgrades to patch up their compliance holes.
While OKX remains a heavyweight in the crypto world, this latest fine shows that even the big players aren’t immune to regulatory heat.
Their business model might focus on European customers, but their AML problems seem to know no borders. Sometimes being a crypto giant just means there’s more to scrutinize.
