Kucoin halts EU trading due to lack of compliance staff

Looks like it's making headlines everywhere. Austria's the one calling the shots.

And the reason for the compliance team's departure was without reason (I consider it a resignation). I suspect a serious internal issue or something related to their recent MiCA permit, as the compliance team members' departures occurred simultaneously. https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2026/02/23/kucoin-banned-in-europe-over-anti-money-laundering-and-compliance-staff-shortfall

This is not the first time I am seeing such news about Kucoin. They seem to have been fined and banned countless times by different regulators. I don't know why the keep falling in trouble and not learning from the past mistakes 1. Canada slaps KuCoin with USD 14 million fine over AML failings 2. KuCoin Fined $300M, Founders Resign After Guilty Plea in US Licensing Case And this one is recent Dubai Regulator Says KuCoin May Be Serving Residents “Without Approval”

Are they simply terrible at recruiting people to do their job, or are there other reasons for this? I'm not up to date with international exchanges, but it seems like most of them are operating normally in the EU. CMIIW. I wonder how effective this ban/fine will be. In my country, unlicensed exchanges can be accessed through some tricks, and they haven't paid a dime for "breaking rules" yet.

Their infrastructure and team quality are poor compared to the budgets they spend (well, you know what that means), and local authorities are often found to be involved in shady games. So they only crack down on violations selectively and arbitrarily, either because they need to go viral first, or because it's "profitable" for certain parties.