Dutch court declares crypto platform Knaken bankrupt over missing funds

A Dutch court has declared cryptocurrency platform Knaken Cryptohandel BV and its affiliated foundation bankrupt after prosecutors said 7 million euros ($8 million) in customer assets were missing.

The Rotterdam court issued the ruling on Thursday, saying the bankruptcy was needed to ensure an orderly settlement after Knaken blocked access to its platform and accounts.

According to the court, the company has insufficient assets to fully repay users. The court also said customers lacked sufficient information to determine their legal position.

The Dutch Public Prosecution Service filed the bankruptcy petition on June 30 after opening a criminal investigation into the missing funds, while the Netherlands’ financial crime investigation service also raided the company in late June and seized devices and assets.

Founded in Rotterdam in 2017, Knaken went offline in early June, according to NL Times. The company does not appear in the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets’ (AFM) register of authorized crypto-asset service providers.

The AFM told Cointelegraph in early July that it had already begun taking supervisory and enforcement action against unauthorized crypto-asset service providers after the Netherlands ended its Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation transition period on June 30, 2025. The Dutch deadline came before the EU-wide maximum transition deadline of July 1, 2026.

Related: MiCA licenses are only the beginning as crypto custodians face scrutiny