GDPR Compliance in Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the Netherlands' financial capital and one of Europe's most important financial hubs, home to ING Group (one of Europe's largest banks by assets), ABN AMRO, and Aegon. Euronext Amsterdam — part of Euronext NV whose headquarters are here — is one of Europe's oldest stock exchanges, listing ASML, Heineken, and Philips. The city is also Europe's largest trading hub for equities and derivatives outside London, with Optiver, IMC, and Flow Traders among the world's leading algorithmic trading firms. DNB (De Nederlandsche Bank) and AFM (Autoriteit Financiële Markten) provide dual supervision.
Request a demoWhy GDPR matters in Amsterdam
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR / DSGVO) governs the processing of personal data of individuals in the EU, with penalties of up to €20M or 4% of annual global turnover. In Germany, the BDSG (Federal Data Protection Act) adds national requirements including mandatory DPO appointment for organizations with 20+ employees processing personal data.
ING Group, processing 38 million customer interactions weekly across 40 countries, represents one of the most complex DORA implementations in the EU — with Art. 17 incident reporting requiring near real-time response. ABN AMRO's 2022 cyber incident demonstrated how quickly ICT disruptions can affect millions of retail customers. The Netherlands was an early adopter of NIS2 transposition; DNB has published detailed DORA guidance and is expected to be one of the most rigorous supervisors. Amsterdam's algorithmic trading firms — processing millions of transactions per second — face the most stringent ICT resilience requirements of any sector. The Dutch FinTech scene (Adyen, Mollie, Bunq) creates a vibrant ecosystem where DORA compliance is a scaling prerequisite.
Supervisory Bodies
DNB (De Nederlandsche Bank), AFM
Key Industries
- Universal Banking
- Algorithmic & High-Frequency Trading
- Asset Management & Insurance
- FinTech & Payments