This update is purely procedural and administrative, describing enforcement settlement mechanics rather than any specific financial product or service offering.
No secondary tag applies; this is an enforcement procedure update with no connection to investment services, lending, digital assets, or other product categories.
Specialism
The update describes a procedural modification to how financial regulators (AFM and DNB) administer penalty settlements, which is an enforcement process change rather than a substantive regulatory requirement.
Mandatory inheritance: Enforcement requires Supervision as a parent tag, reflecting the supervisory authorities' oversight role in administering penalties.
TITLE: Netherlands' Financial Conduct Authority Expands Simplified Penalty Settlement Procedure
BODY:
On March 2, 2026, the Autoriteit Financiële Markten (AFM) expanded its simplified penalty settlement procedure for enforcement cases. Under the revised approach, penalised parties no longer need to acknowledge a breach of regulations, but instead must acknowledge the facts upon which the penalty decision is based.
The AFM has operated a simplified penalty settlement procedure for four years. The key modification reflects practical experience: acknowledging facts rather than admitting regulatory violations better aligns with real-world circumstances. Under the simplified procedure, a penalised party acknowledges the facts in the decision and accepts the penalty without filing objections or appeals. In return, the AFM issues an abbreviated penalty decision and applies a 15 percent reduction to the penalty amount. Approximately 20 percent of penalty cases have been handled through this streamlined process in recent years.
The Dutch central bank, De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), has adopted the same approach following positive results at the AFM. Both supervisory authorities now operate a unified simplified penalty procedure, creating consistency across financial regulation enforcement in the Netherlands. The procedure provides efficiency benefits for both authorities and penalised parties by accelerating case resolution and providing faster clarity for all involved.
AFM chair Laura van Geest stated that the simplified penalty settlement procedure is an effective instrument that increases efficiency in penalty proceedings.
**Reference:**
Autoriteit Financiële Markten. Procedure vereenvoudigde afdoening boetezaken AFM. Available at: https://www.afm.nl/en