US Users Barred From KuCoin After $500K CFTC Settlement
A U.S. federal court has permanently barred Peken Global Limited, operator of KuCoin, from allowing U.S. users to access its cryptocurrency platform unless it registers as a foreign board of trade. The District Court for the Southern District of New York also imposed a $500,000 civil penalty on the company. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) had sued Peken Global and three related entities in March 2024 for running an unregistered digital asset derivatives exchange and failing to establish an effective customer identification program. Peken Global previously pleaded guilty in January 2025 to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, resulting in a $112.9 million fine, $184.5 million forfeiture, and a required two-year exit from the U.S. market. Due to its cooperation, the CFTC did not pursue disgorgement in the civil case and dismissed claims against the other entities. This action follows recent CFTC-SEC coordination and the launch of a CFTC “innovation task force” on crypto, AI, and prediction markets.
