KuCoin EU names AML chief in Vienna after Austria ban

KuCoin EU has appointed Carmen Kleinhans as its Anti-Money Laundering Officer and expanded its compliance team in Vienna, following a restriction by Austria’s Financial Market Authority that barred the unit from taking on new clients or signing new contracts under the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA).

Kleinhans will oversee AML, counter-terrorist financing and sanctions controls for the MiCA-licensed entity. Two deputy AML officers have joined the Vienna team; both are former Austrian regulators and compliance chiefs from banks. The group will also manage enterprise-wide risk and engage with supervisors as part of a time-bound remediation plan.

Austrian regulators imposed the restriction after finding certain AML/CTF and sanctions compliance roles were not adequately staffed. The regulator’s action, taken in February, limits KuCoin EU’s ability to bring on new users until the identified staffing and governance gaps are addressed.

KuCoin EU said it has been recruiting experienced compliance professionals from traditional financial institutions and has introduced enhanced oversight measures. The company described the changes as components of a remediation plan intended to meet EU regulatory expectations and to address the specific gaps cited by the Austrian supervisor.

Regulatory scrutiny of crypto compliance has increased in recent years. A recent security audit listed KuCoin among exchanges that faced substantial AML-related penalties in 2025, reflecting wider enforcement activity focused on governance, staffing and controls.

At the group level, KuCoin reached a nearly $300 million settlement with U.S. authorities in January 2025 after pleading guilty to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and failing to implement required AML and know-your-customer controls. On March 30, the parent company agreed to pay a $500,000 civil penalty to resolve an action by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission alleging operation of an unregistered offshore commodities exchange. Regulators in Dubai issued a warning in March about offering virtual asset services without a local licence.

Kleinhans described the priority as integrating controls into daily operations rather than pursuing ‘box-ticking’ exercises. KuCoin EU managing director Sabina Liu described Europe as a ‘key strategic market’ for the firm and said the Vienna office is a locally regulated operation designed to serve users across 29 EEA markets with clear regulatory oversight and local accountability. The company said the strengthened Vienna compliance team is intended to enable a return to normal onboarding once the regulator’s concerns are resolved.