Irish central bank fines Coinbase unit €3.25 million

LONDON, Oct 22 (Reuters) - The Central Bank of Ireland fined crypto asset-trading platform Coinbase's Irish unit €3.25 million ($3.65 million) for breaching safeguarding and outsourcing obligations between 2020 and 2025, it said in a statement on Thursday.

The bank said the fine follows a settlement it reached with Coinbase Ireland on Wednesday, and came after rules related to protecting customer funds and maintaining confidence in the financial system were breached.

"Payment and e-money firms have a fundamental obligation to fully safeguard customers' funds," Central Bank Director of Enforcement Karen O'Leary said.

"The Central Bank has made its supervisory expectations in this regard clear: we have no tolerance for weaknesses in safeguarding arrangements."

A Coinbase spokesperson said it had self-reported the issues to the Central Bank and that "no customers suffered financial loss or were unable to access their funds as a result".

"These issues largely arose in the context of Coinbase taking steps to protect customers during periods of significant disruption," the spokesperson said in a statement.

Last year, the bank fined a Coinbase subsidiary €21.5 million for breaching anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist transaction monitoring obligations.

($1 = 0.8915 euros)

(Reporting by Sarah Young; editing by Sam Tobin)