Block agrees to $40 million fine from New York State Department of Financial Services

Wall Street regulatory agency announced on Thursday that Block, Inc. has agreed to a $40 million settlement with the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) to compensate for "significant mistakes" in its anti-money laundering compliance program. The New York Department of Financial Services added that the company led by Jack Dorsey has agreed to hire an independent monitor after violating the department's rules on transfers and virtual currency. The New York State Department of Financial Services found that Block had "inadequate customer due diligence" and failed to implement systems sufficient to prevent money laundering and illegal activities. The services of Block were "easily exploited by criminals" and it was believed that Block's "lenient handling" of Bitcoin transactions led to a large number of anonymous transactions evading scrutiny.