Block Inc. Settles with New York Regulators for $40M Over Cash App Compliance Violations

Adrienne A. Harris, superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS), has ordered Block, Inc., the Cash App owner, to pay the sum of $40 million in penalty for noncompliance to the Anti-Money Laundering Program and Virtual Currency Compliance failures on the company’s Cash App platform.

The DFS issued the fine after the fintech firm was found guilty of failing to put things in place for sufficient customer identification procedures and transaction monitoring.

The DFS added that the company also failed to report suspicious transactions, including the non-screening of high-risk Bitcoin transactions. The department also found the company violating the consumer protection regulations.

Consequently, the agency asserted that the company’s actions fuel money laundering risk and undermine the country’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) movement.

🇺🇸 CASH APP OWNER NAILED FOR LETTING CRIMINALS SLIDE—SLAMMED WITH $40M FINE

Block—the Jack Dorsey-led company behind Cash App—grew fast and forgot the basics: like stopping criminals from using its platform.

New York regulators say it failed to vet users, ignored red flags, and… https://t.co/Zfnlw3nIY2 pic.twitter.com/JQijGEkZ6u

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) April 10, 2025

In addition to the monetary fine, the settlement also required Block, Inc. to hire an independent monitor to be in charge of the company’s doings to evaluate its compliance with the Department’s regulations and its remediation efforts.

Block launched Cash App in 2013. It is a peer-to-peer money transmission service that allows users to send and receive fiat currency.

The company was licensed by the Department to conduct money transmission business in the State of New York since 2013 and virtual currency business through Cash App since 2018.

All Financial Services Providers Must Uphold Governmental Regulations

Additionally, Superintendent Harris stated that compliance functions to regulatory frameworks must evolve alongside a company’s growth.

She expressed that the Block’s Cash App expanded rapidly without a sufficiently strong compliance framework, leading to risks and vulnerabilities that breached the regulations governing financial services in New York.

To enforce accountability, the Department is taking firm actions against Block and any other financial services providers that breach the defined set of rules.

“All financial institutions, whether traditional financial services companies or emerging cryptocurrency platforms, must adhere to rigorous standards that protect consumers and the integrity of the financial system,”

Superintendent Harris said.

Block Inc. Agreed to Pay a Fine of $80M

Previously, in January 2025, Block was convicted for a similar offence of not providing sufficient guidelines to combat money laundering on its mobile payment service, Cash App, and was ordered to pay a fine of $80 million.

In addition, the company also undertook corrective action for violations of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and anti-money laundering (AML) laws that safeguard the financial system from illicit use.

The enforcement action was issued against the fintech company by 48 state financial regulators.

Similarly, after over three years of legal battle, Ripple and the SEC settled with Ripple forfeiting $50 million from the initial $125 million fine, so the company received $75 million. The SEC also lifted restrictions on XRP institutional sales, marking the end of a years-long legal battle.