AFM Fines BUX €1.6 Million for Inducements Ban Violation

The Netherlands’ AFM fines neobroker BUX €1.6M for violating the inducements ban. BUX stopped referral fees in April 2023 and remains committed to transparency.

Key Points: 

• AFM fined BUX €1.6 million for compensating users and influencers for referrals, violating the inducements ban.
• BUX ceased referral payments in April 2023 and assured customers were never disadvantaged.

The Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) has fined neobroker BUX €1.6 million for breaching the inducements ban. The financial watchdog announced that BUX violated regulations by compensating existing customers, comparison websites, and financial influencers (finfluencers) for referring new clients.

AFM Fines BUX €1.6 Million for Inducements Ban Violation

AFM stated that BUX’s referral practices conflicted with the inducements ban. According to the regulator, how these payments were made was not in compliance with the financial market rules.

Yorick Naeff, CEO of BUX, responded to the fine by reaffirming the company’s commitment to transparency and customer interests.

“At BUX, transparency and the interests of our customers always come first. While we respect the AFM’s position, we want to emphasize that the referral fees we have paid in the past came out of our pocket and have never been at the expense of our customers. Our focus remains on building an accessible and intuitive investment platform, as we continue striving to increase retail participation in Europe,” Naeff stated.

Since April 2023, BUX has ceased paying referral fees. The company reiterated that it values customer interests highly and assured that neither existing nor new clients suffered disadvantages due to these past incentives.

In mid-2024, Dutch banking giant ABN AMRO acquired BUX. The bank acknowledged that it was aware of the discussions between BUX and the AFM regarding these regulatory violations before finalizing the acquisition.

BUX continues to focus on its mission of making investing accessible, intuitive, and affordable. The company aims to boost retail investor participation in Europe by offering a seamless and user-friendly investment experience.

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