OKX Quietly Settled Regulatory ‘Failings’ With Malta Financial Services Authority

• The MFSA agreed to settle pending matters with OKX after the demonstration of goodwill in the form of a 304,000 euro ($322,000) penalty.

• OKX and the MFSA also agreed on a number of measures, including the appointment of an independent third-party service provider to review the adequacy of the exchange’s governance arrangements.

Last month, OKX, the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange, reached a little-noticed 304,000 euro ($329,000) settlement with the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) for certain “failings” related to its Okcoin Europe subsidiary.

The Malta regulator’s investigation found failings with respect to Article 41 of the MFSA Virtual Financial Assets Act, according to a filing. The article, while vague, seems to say that a regulated financial services or digital asset firm must follow the Maltese government’s directives or risk a fine or being booted from the country.

“On 22 January 2024 the MFSA agreed to settle pending matters with the Company after demonstration of goodwill by the Company,” the regulator said. “Additionally, the Company and the MFSA have also agreed on a number of measures, including the appointment of an independent third-party service provider, to inter alia, review the adequacy of the Company’s governance arrangements.”

Asked by CoinDesk to unpack what OKX’s regulatory failings amounted to, MFSA said: “The information which the Authority is in a position to divulge has already been made public through the notice.”

OKX declined the opportunity to elaborate on what the regulatory problem involved when contacted by CoinDesk. An OKX representative said there would be no further comment on the nature of the exchange’s shortcomings or the goodwill settlement.

OKX has been sunsetting its Okcoin entities in Europe and the U.S. and rebranding them under the OKX banner.