Key Points:
- OKX announced that it's closing services in India three months after the Financial Intelligence Unit issued a non-compliance note to nine crypto exchanges.
- The exchange notified users about the decision today, asking them to redeem their funds by April 30.
The crypto exchange's decision comes following the move made by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) - an arm of the Indian Finance Ministry, which issued a notice of non-compliance to nine foreign crypto exchanges.
FIU requested blocking the URLs of nine crypto exchanges
FIU requested to block the URLs of Binance, KuCoin, Huobi, Kraken, Gate.io, Bittrex, Bitstamp, MEXC Global and Bitfinex.
Back in December 2023, the official note stated:
"Virtual Digital Assets Service Providers (VDA SPs) were brought into the ambit of Anti Money Laundering/Counter Financing of Terrorism (AML-CFT) framework under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PML) Act, 2002 in March 2023."
The Financial Intelligence Unit India (FIU IND) has taken compliance action against offshore entities.
The unit has issued compliance Show Cause Notices to nine offshore Virtual Digital Assets Service Providers (VDA SPs) under Section 13 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).
OKX cited regulatory hurdles when it offered the decision to its users.
The FIU requested the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to block the websites of the nine crypto exchanges mentioned above within two weeks of the notice.
Following the decision to block the website and the applications, OKX began a new registration process with stronger Know Your Customer (KYC) sign-ups.
But, according to the recent announcement made by the exchange, it's more than obvious that their efforts were not enough to help the financial entity successfully navigate its hardships in India.
The crypto exchange's announcement triggered panic among users on X who are concerned that the same might happen with more crypto exchanges.
