An investment scammer directed you to send crypto to a KuCoin address, or cashed out through KuCoin. KuCoin settled with the US DOJ in 2023, agreed to a $5M fine, and implemented mandatory KYC. Since August 2023, every KuCoin account is tied to a verified identity.
Investment scammers historically used KuCoin because it didn't require KYC until 2023. Pre-August 2023 accounts may have weaker KYC. Post-August 2023 accounts have full KYC. KuCoin's 3-tier risk classification system (Low/Medium/High) affects how accounts are treated during compliance reviews.
KuCoin compliance: KuCoin's compliance team processes legal requests through email. Post-DOJ settlement, KuCoin has improved compliance cooperation. Response times: 7-14 business days. KuCoin has a 3-tier risk classification that determines account restrictions.
Freeze capability: KuCoin can freeze accounts. Post-DOJ settlement, KuCoin is more cooperative with law enforcement. The self-service unfreeze feature (which allowed scammers to bypass freezes) has been restricted. Response: 7-14 business days.
KYC disclosure: KuCoin KYC (since Aug 2023): government ID, selfie. Pre-August 2023 accounts may have partial or no KYC — we work with what's available. Disclosure follows Seychelles or MLAT procedures.
A client lost €65,000 to a fake 'crypto cloud mining' platform. The scammer's KuCoin account was created in 2022 (pre-mandatory KYC) but had submitted KYC during the 2023 compliance push. We filed a legal request and KuCoin cooperated — the account (containing €45,000 in USDT) was frozen within 10 business days. The scammer's KYC revealed a resident of Turkey. Outcome: 69% recovery (€45,000 of €65,000).
Details anonymized to protect client confidentiality. Swiss professional secrecy applies.
The 'fee scam' within the scam: If a platform is asking you to pay 'withdrawal fees,' 'tax clearance,' or 'insurance deposits' — these are additional scams. Do NOT send more money. Read our recovery scam warning.
Was your own KuCoin account also frozen? Our KuCoin account unlock practice can help.
KuCoin pushed all existing accounts through KYC verification during 2023. Even pre-August 2023 accounts now have KYC on file. If the scammer completed the verification, their identity is available through legal process. If they refused KYC, their account would have been restricted — meaning funds may still be frozen on the platform.
Yes. Post-DOJ settlement (December 2023), KuCoin improved compliance cooperation, restricted the self-service unfreeze feature, and implemented full KYC. These changes make KuCoin more responsive to legal requests than before.
7-14 business days in our experience. Post-DOJ settlement, KuCoin is more cooperative but still slower than Binance or Coinbase. No published timelines.
KuCoin classifies accounts as Low, Medium, or High risk. High-risk accounts face withdrawal limits, trading restrictions, and enhanced monitoring. If the scammer's account is classified High risk, it may already have restrictions — which helps our case.
Previously, KuCoin had a self-service unfreeze feature that scammers could use to bypass freezes. Post-DOJ settlement, this feature has been restricted. Freezes placed by compliance now require compliance approval to lift.
In 2024, KuCoin settled with the US DOJ for $5M for AML violations. As part of the settlement, KuCoin agreed to enhance its compliance program and cooperate with US law enforcement. If you are a US citizen or resident, we file through the FBI, which KuCoin must cooperate with under the settlement. This typically reduces response time from 14-21 days (Seychelles) to 3-10 days (US subsidiary).
Describe what happened. Include the platform URL, deposit addresses, transaction hashes, and amount lost. We respond within 6 hours.