The Dutch Public Prosecutor’s Office asked the Rotterdam Court to issue a bankruptcy order for Stichting Knaken Payments, which is linked to the cryptocurrency platform Knaken Cryptohandel. The prosecutor’s office announced that this step was taken for public interest reasons. Approximately 30 thousand customers cannot access their assets due to the platform being offline since the beginning of June.
Lack of licensing and customer payments came to the fore
Knaken allowed users to buy and sell crypto assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum in exchange for euros, make transactions and store their digital assets. In the Netherlands, these activities require a Dutch Financial Markets Authority AFM license under the European Union’s crypto asset rules. The prosecutor’s office stated that Knaken never obtained this license. AFM serves as the official body that oversees the financial markets of the Netherlands.
The Dutch Public Prosecutor’s Office stated that it has serious concerns that the liquidation process is not proceeding regularly, therefore the bankruptcy request has been submitted to the court within the scope of public interest.
Although the company announced that it had stopped its activities and entered the closing process, the prosecutor’s office stated that payments were not made to customers. Authorities also noted that some customers were told not to apply for compensation. If the court grants the bankruptcy petition, a court-appointed trustee will take over Knaken’s assets and evaluate what amounts can be repaid to customers and other creditors.
The prosecutor’s office also emphasized that the management of this process will belong entirely to the trustee and that they will not be directly involved in the repayment plan. Thus, the case moved to a critical stage in terms of both protecting customer assets and supervising the liquidation process.
Searches conducted in separate criminal investigation
In parallel with the civil bankruptcy application, a separate criminal investigation is being carried out by the Dutch Financial Information and Investigation Agency FIOD. The investigation was launched following warnings from the AFM and a complaint from the regulator. During the operations carried out on Monday, some addresses were searched, laptops and phones were seized, and company assets were also taken under protection.
Authorities announced that no arrests have been made so far. The prosecutor’s office stated that the bankruptcy process and the criminal investigation were carried out by independent teams and stated that the two lines should not be confused.
If the court decides bankruptcy, the appointed trustee will examine Knaken’s assets and decide to what extent refunds can be made to customers or other creditors.
Pressure mounts as end of MiCA transition approaches
The file coincided with the end of the transition period of the MiCA regulation in Europe. The transition period that allows operating under the old national rules in the European Union ends on July 1. After this date, platforms that do not receive the necessary authorization will not be able to legally serve EU customers.
The Netherlands ended its own transition process a year ago. For this reason, the Knaken file stands out as one of the examples showing that the regulatory pressure on platforms operating without a license is getting tougher. It was also noted that the company had previously established sponsorship relationships with Dutch football clubs such as Ajax, Feyenoord and Sparta Rotterdam, but these collaborations ended before the collapse.
