Offshore crypto exchange settles with DoJ
According to court filings, between 2018 and early 2024, OKX served retail and institutional investors in the U.S., despite adopting an internal policy in 2017 against serving U.S. clients, and without registering as a money transmitting business under U.S. law — a step that requires compliance with AML requirements, including know-your-client (KYC) requirements.
During the period, the firm — which allowed users to trade hundreds of cryptocurrencies, and derivatives tied to crypto assets, such as bitcoin — processed over US$1 trillion worth of transactions, and generated hundreds of millions of dollars in fees, U.S. authorities alleged.
“[D]espite OKX’s official policy prohibiting U.S. persons from transacting on…
