Anti-Financial Crime & Financial Crime Compliance
Regulatory Intelligence Leadership | Insight | Network

Banking, EU/Europe, Financial Crime, Tech, Technology

OPINION: Why Bunq’s €2.6M fine casts doubt over AI transaction monitoring

Premium August 27, 2025

CENTRAL BANK: Fintech Bunq has been fined for AML infringements by the Dutch Central Bank (DNB). Our file photo shows King Willem-Alexander and Klaas Knot open the renovated head office of De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB).

NEWS: Financial crime activity reaches $4.4 trillion per year, growing nearly 20% annually

NEWS: World law enforcement chiefs set for EAFCS2026 to enhance fight against fraud and financial crime

NEWS: Orca Fraud raises $2.35M to scale real-time fraud intelligence tech

By SARAH BETH FELIX, Special Correspondent

SO, a €2.6 million AML fine for Bunq, one of Europe’s leading fintechs. The company is planning to appeal the penalty from the Dutch central bank, so we could be in line for a spicy court showdown.

After reading through the translated complaint (all 74 pages!) in my opinion, there are two options for what happened.

AML Intelligence
Subscribe now to have unlimited access

With our membership subscription, you will have unlimited access to the AML Intelligence site, updated daily with the latest analysis, opinion, and breaking news across the sector, newsletter delivered twice per week, access to our Global Bank Fines & Penalties database, free access to Boardroom Series and more!

View subscription optionsIf you have an account, log in

NEWS: Financial crime activity reaches $4.4 trillion per year, growing nearly 20% annually

NEWS: World law enforcement chiefs set for EAFCS2026 to enhance fight against fraud and financial crime

NEWS: Orca Fraud raises $2.35M to scale real-time fraud intelligence tech

Regulatory Watch News

  • NSW man jailed in WA for role in cross-border drug trafficking operation

    Australia Federal Police

    A New South Wales man has been sentenced to three years’ imprisonment in Western Australia for his involvement in a crime syndicate trafficking illicit drugs and cash between Sydney and Perth. The Perth District Court sentenced the man, 35, on 6 March, 2026, for one count of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring the commission of an offence, namely trafficking a commercial quantity of a controlled drug, namely methamphetamine, contrary to sections 11.2(1) and 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).

  • The Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) Vienna, Austria, 9 – 13 March 2026

    UNODC

    The Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) was established by Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) resolution 9(I) in 1946, to assist the ECOSOC in supervising the application of the international drug control treaties. In 1991, the General Assembly (GA) expanded the mandate of the CND to function as the governing body of UNODC (A/RES/46/104). The CND's agenda has two distinct segments: a normative segment for discharging treaty-based and normative functions; and an operational segment for exercising the role as the governing body of UNODC.

  • Publication of UK Government’s strategic approach to sanctions enforcement

    UK Government

    Today, we have published an overview of the UK Government’s approach to enforcing breaches of UK sanctions. This follows the cross-government review of sanctions implementation and enforcement, which concluded that, ‘a cross-government strategy on enforcement will assist industry to understand the range of non-compliance and possible enforcement consequences’. The document sets out key enforcement principles, emphasises the importance of strong compliance and outlines the potential consequences of non-compliance. It also summarises the roles of key government departments, regulators and enforcement bodies

Sign Up To Our Newsletter

Contact Us