AML Crackdown Overtakes SEC Securities Cases as Top Crypto Risk, CertiK Finds

Anti-money laundering (AML) enforcement has overtaken securities classification as the top regulatory risk for digital asset firms, according to CertiK’s Skynet State of Digital Asset Regulations Report published Tuesday.

AML-related fines exceeded $900 million in the first half of 2025, the report found, while U.S. SEC crypto penalties fell 97% year-over-year as the US DOJ and FinCEN absorbed the agenda.

Enforcement Shifts From Classification to AML Pressure

Two settlements anchor the trend. OKX paid $504 million to U.S. authorities in February 2025 after pleading guilty to running an unlicensed money transmitting business, with prosecutors citing more than $5 billion in suspicious flows.

KuCoin followed in January with a $297 million resolution covering similar Bank Secrecy Act failures. Its co-founders agreed to step down, and the exchange exited the U.S. market for at least two years.

European regulators applied parallel pressure. AML-related fines across the bloc surged 767% in the same period, while SEC monetary penalties against digital-asset firms collapsed to roughly $142 million.

Compliance Costs Rise as Frameworks Mature

The report frames 2025 as the year regulators moved past debates over which tokens qualify as securities. Smart contract audits are now effectively mandatory for licensing in Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, the European Union, and New York.

Stablecoin oversight has shifted in similar fashion. Reserve management, redemption mechanics, and cross-border settlement now dominate policy.

The Basel Committee’s framework, effective January 1, 2026, formalizes the divide.

Tokenized traditional assets and qualifying stablecoins receive favorable treatment.

Meanwhile, unbacked crypto including Bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) face higher capital charges.

For exchanges, custodians, and issuers, the report’s takeaway is that transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, and licensing infrastructure now matter more than fighting classification battles.

Whether smaller venues can carry the same compliance load as the largest firms will shape the next phase of consolidation.