Block has agreed in principle to pay $764 million to resolve a Justice Department investigation into its anti-money-laundering controls. The company disclosed the deferred-prosecution agreement in a Nov. 3 filing, noting the deal requires final approval.
The settlement resolves allegations that Block failed to maintain an effective anti-money-laundering program under the Bank Secrecy Act. Under the terms, a criminal charge would be deferred for three years. The gross settlement figure was approximately $964 million, reduced to $764 million after credits for earlier regulatory penalties.
Block stated it disputes the basis and methodology of the government’s assessment. The payment exceeds the $566 million net profit the financial services firm reported for the third quarter.
Investigation Background
The Justice Department inquiry dates to March 2023, following a report by Hindenburg Research. The short seller alleged that Cash App inflated user counts with duplicate accounts and had weak identity checks that facilitated money laundering. Block characterized the Hindenburg report as inaccurate and misleading.
While the Securities and Exchange Commission closed its portion of the inquiry in March without recommending enforcement, other regulators have penalized the company. The New York Department of Financial Services fined Block $40 million in April 2025, and a multistate settlement added $80 million in January 2025.
Quarterly Financial Results
Alongside the legal disclosure, Block reported a 22 percent increase in quarterly gross profit to $3.24 billion. Cash App gross profit rose 27 percent to $2.07 billion, while Square gross profit increased 14 percent to $1.16 billion.
Gross profit from the bitcoin business fell 50 percent to $52 million from $104 million a year earlier. Bitcoin revenue dropped 11 percent to $1.8 billion. Block attributed the decline in bitcoin profit to its decision to cut fees on certain Cash App transactions and waived processing fees on bitcoin through 2026.
Revenue from bitcoin sales also declined as the asset price dropped from about $114,000 to $70,000 over the year. The company held 28,355 BTC across its treasury and customer balances as of the first quarter.
