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Dutch Neobank Bunq Fined $3 Million For Failing Money Laundering Controls
- Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
The Dutch central bank, De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), has fined the neobank bunq €2.6 million (about $3 million) for failures in its anti-money-laundering controls.
In a rush? Here are the quick facts:
- bunq has been fined 2.6 million euros for failures in money laundering controls.
- DNB accused the online bank of “serious deficiencies in its anti-money laundering controls.”
- The Dutch neobank filed an objection to the regulator’s fine.
According to the Dutch regulator’s official announcement published on Monday, the online bank bunq has been sanctioned for “serious deficiencies in its anti-money laundering controls during the period under review, from January 2021 to May 2022.”
In its investigation, DNB found that bunq’s customer transaction monitoring was classified as “high-risk.” The regulator determined that the neobank failed to comply with the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing Act (Wet ter voorkoming van witwassen en terrorismefinanciering, Wwft), which sets rules for preventing money laundering and terrorist financing, and concluded the violations were severe and culpable.
“Between 2018 and 2023, DNB carried out several examinations into bunq’s compliance with the Wwft,” wrote the DNB. “During these examinations various instances of non-compliance with the Wwft were identified, that were found to be both severe and culpable.”
bunq filed an objection to the fine, which is still pending. According to Techzine, the company said it takes the integrity of the financial system very seriously. “That is why we use the most advanced technologies and continuously implement improvements,” said a spokesperson to Techzine.
This is the second dispute between bunq and the DNB. In 2018, bunq successfully challenged the regulator after it prohibited the bank’s use of AI for transaction screening; the court ultimately ruled in bunq’s favor.
The neo-banks market has been growing rapidly in the past few years, with unique approaches such as TBC Uzbekistan’s AI solutions and more digital alternatives for customers’ money management and finances. Regulators have been watching closely and sanctioning firms for lapses. A few months ago, the British company Wise was also accused of having weak anti-money laundering measures and was forced to fix them by European regulators.
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Meta Partners With Midjourney To License Images And Videos
- Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
Meta’s Chief AI Officer, Alexandr Wang, announced on Saturday that the tech giant is partnering with the AI lab Midjourney. The alliance will allow Meta to license the startup’s popular video and image generation technology.
In a rush? Here are the quick facts:
- Meta partnered with the AI lab Midjourney to license image and video generation tech.
- Alexandr Wang highlighted Midjourney’s “aesthetic technology” and accomplishments.
- The deal aims to boost Meta’s competitiveness against Google’s Veo and OpenAI’s Sora.
In several posts on the social media platform Threads , Wang—who leads Meta’s new Superintelligence AI Lab —explained that the new collaboration will help Meta deliver more visually appealing products, leveraging the aesthetic expertise developed by Midjourney.
“Today we’re proud to announce a partnership with Midjourney to license their aesthetic technology for our future models and products, bringing beauty to billions,” wrote Wang. “We are incredibly impressed by Midjourney. They have accomplished true feats of technical and aesthetic excellence, and we are thrilled to be working more closely with them.”
Wang also noted Meta’s commitment to building alliances with talented developers in the AI industry that align with the company’s ambitious vision.
Midjourney, founded in 2022, specializes in transforming text prompts into AI-generated images and videos, and licenses its products through a subscription model—with monthly rates starting at $10. The startup’s latest model, V7 , launched in June, offers higher image quality and more features than previous versions.
While Meta has its own image generation models, they haven’t matched the performance of leading competitors. Partnering with Midjourney—one of the leading companies in AI image creation—could give the tech giant an edge when competing with advanced technologies such as Google’s Veo and OpenAI’s Sora .
“To ensure Meta is able to deliver the best possible products for people, it will require taking an all-of-the-above approach,” wrote Wang. “This means world-class talent, an ambitious compute roadmap, and working with the best players across the industry.”
Wang also promised to share more updates and products created through the partnership soon. The deal comes after Meta pauses hiring for its AI division , amid speculation about a potential AI market bubble.
