Ireland Fines Coinbase Unit €3.25M Over Customer Fund Safeguarding Failures

Ireland's central bank fined Coinbase's Irish subsidiary roughly $3.6 million for failing to properly safeguard customer funds, its second enforcement action against the exchange's European operations in under a year. The Central Bank of Ireland penalized Coinbase Ireland €3,252,618 for breaching safeguarding and outsourcing rules under the country's Electronic Money Regulations between November 2020 and August 2025, the regulator said Thursday. The figure reflects a 30% settlement discount from a €4,646,597 penalty reached on Oct. 21, and still requires High Court confirmation. The regulator cited three main failures: over-reliance on the U.S. parent for safeguarding processes required under Irish and EU rules, insufficient local expertise to oversee customer fund protection, and a designated safeguarding account left underfunded for extended periods. It also faulted internal controls and the failure to flag material safeguarding changes. Coinbase Ireland admitted the breaches. The penalty follows a €21.5 million fine against Coinbase Europe in May over anti-money-laundering failures. Coinbase uses Ireland as its EU hub, holding an e-money license secured ahead of Brexit and a MiCA license to passport services bloc-wide.