Block has agreed in principle to pay $764 million to resolve a Justice Department investigation into its anti-money-laundering controls, more than the $566 million profit it reported for the third quarter. Separately, the company's bitcoin gross profit fell 50% after it cut fees on certain bitcoin transactions.
Jack Dorsey's payments company Block has agreed in principle to pay $764 million to resolve a U.S. Justice Department investigation into its anti-money-laundering controls. That is larger than the $566 million profit it reported for the third quarter.
The proposed deal would defer a criminal charge
The agreement, reached in October, would defer a criminal charge for three years alleging that Block failed to maintain an effective anti-money-laundering program, as the Bank Secrecy Act requires. The proposed resolution carries a gross monetary component of approximately $964 million, which falls to $764 million after credits for earlier regulatory settlements. Block has already set aside the latter amount, it said in the filing.
However, the deal is not final. According to The Defiant, the agreement remains subject to a final agreement and court approval. Block also said the final terms could produce losses exceeding the $764 million it has accrued.
The probe traces back to a 2023 short-seller report
The investigation dates to 2023, when the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission began examining Block's compliance practices after a short-seller report. Hindenburg Research wrote that report and alleged that Cash App inflated its user numbers and that weak identity checks let criminals use the platform. Block rejected the findings as inaccurate and misleading. The SEC closed its separate investigation in March without recommending enforcement action.
In April 2025, New York's financial regulator fined Block $40 million after finding gaps in its compliance systems.
Lower Cash App fees halve bitcoin profit
The filing comes as Block earns less from bitcoin trading on Cash App. Its bitcoin ecosystem gross profit fell 50% to $52 million in the third quarter, from $104 million a year earlier, and Block attributed the decline primarily to its decision to reduce fees on certain bitcoin transactions.
Meanwhile, the rest of the business kept growing. Block's overall gross profit rose 22% to $3.24 billion, helped by stronger activity across Cash App's lending and payments businesses.
Sources: CoinDesk, The Defiant
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