- Binance faces a $2.25 million penalty reportedly imposed by India’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
- The penalty relates to the crypto exchange’s violation of India’s anti-money laundering (AML) regulations.
India’s financial watchdog, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), has imposed a 188.2 million rupees ($2.25 million) fine on Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.
FIU has ordered the crypto behemoth to pay the hefty fine after its operations violated India’s anti-money laundering (AML) rules.
The fine comes less than two months after Binance and KuCoin gained registration with the FIU as the exchanges looked to resume operations in India, a country with a huge and rapidly expanding crypto community.
Binance approved to operate in India
In December last year, the regulator issued notices against Binance and other crypto exchanges, over what the FIU termed as violations of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
In January, India removed the nine offshore exchanges from the marketplace, prohibiting their operations in the country without first getting proper regulatory approval.
While Binance and KuCoin subsequently sought approval and became the first offshore exchanges to win it, the FIU imposed penalties.
As reported, KuCoin paid a fine of $41,000 as it resumed operations, while Binance had to wait for the FIU to determine its fine during scheduled hearings. Earlier reports suggested Binance faced up to $2 million in penalties for non-compliance.
The exchange agreed a $4.3 billion penalty from US authorities in 2023 and is currently embroiled in a legal battle with Nigerian authorities.