South Korea eyes KuCoin, BitMEX in crypto exchange crackdown

Published

4 months ago

March 21, 2025

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South Korea eyes KuCoin, BitMEX in crypto exchange crackdown

South Korean authorities are reportedly looking into blocking crypto exchange platforms that may have operated without adhering to the requirements set by the country’s financial regulator.

On March 21, local media Hankyung reported that the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Financial Services Commission is considering sanctions against crypto exchanges for allegedly operating in the country without reporting as an operator to the appropriate regulators.

South Korean financial authorities require crypto exchanges to report to regulators as virtual asset service providers (VASPs) under the country’s Specified Financial Information Act.

The FIU is investigating a list of exchanges and is conducting consultations with related agencies. The regulator is also considering sanctions, such as blocking access to the exchanges, as they begin to prepare countermeasures.

Exchanges operated without VASP reports

The list of exchanges that have allegedly provided services to South Koreans without the appropriate VASP reports includes BitMEX, KuCoin, CoinW, Bitunix and KCEX. The exchanges reportedly provided marketing and customer support to Korean investors without going through the country’s compliance process.

Under the country’s laws, operators of crypto sales, storage, brokerage and management are required to report to the FIU. If exchanges don’t comply, their business will be considered illegal and subject to criminal penalties and administrative sanctions.

An FIU official said in the report that measures to block access to the exchanges included in the list are being reviewed. The official said the financial regulator is currently consulting with the Korea Communications Standards Commission, the regulator in charge of the internet, on how they can block access to the exchanges.

South Korean exchanges face scrutiny

Apart from foreign exchanges, South Korean crypto exchanges are also facing scrutiny over suspicions and rumors of financial misconduct.

On March 20, prosecutors raided Bithumb following suspicions that its former CEO, Kim Dae-sik, embezzled company funds to purchase an apartment. The authorities suspect that the exchange and its executive may have violated some financial laws during the apartment purchase. However, Bithumb responded that Kim had already taken a loan to repay the funds.

In addition, rumors of intermediaries getting paid to list projects on Bithumb and Upbit surfaced. Citing anonymous sources, Wu Blockchain said projects claimed to have paid intermediaries millions to get listed on the exchanges.

Upbit responded, demanding the media outlet to disclose the list of digital asset projects that paid brokerage fees.

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Crypto’s path to legitimacy runs through the CARF regulation

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1 hour ago

July 5, 2025

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The CARF regulation, which brings crypto under global tax reporting standards akin to traditional finance, marks a crucial turning point.

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Tokenized equity still in regulatory grey zone — Attorneys

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Rachel Reeves hints at tax rises in autumn budget after welfare bill U-turn

Published

7 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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Rachel Reeves hints at tax rises in autumn budget after welfare bill U-turn

Rachel Reeves has hinted that taxes are likely to be raised this autumn after a major U-turn on the government’s controversial welfare bill.

Sir Keir Starmer’s Universal Credit and Personal Independent Payment Bill passed through the House of Commons on Tuesday after multiple concessions and threats of a major rebellion.

MPs ended up voting for only one part of the plan: a cut to universal credit (UC) sickness benefits for new claimants from £97 a week to £50 from 2026/7.

Initially aimed at saving £5.5bn, it now leaves the government with an estimated £5.5bn black hole – close to breaching Ms Reeves’s fiscal rules set out last year.

In an interview with The Guardian, the chancellor did not rule out tax rises later in the year, saying there were “costs” to watering down the welfare bill.

“I’m not going to [rule out tax rises], because it would be irresponsible for a chancellor to do that,” Ms Reeves told the outlet.

“We took the decisions last year to draw a line under unfunded commitments and economic mismanagement.

“So we’ll never have to do something like that again. But there are costs to what happened.”

Meanwhile, The Times reported that, ahead of the Commons vote on the welfare bill, Ms Reeves told cabinet ministers the decision to offer concessions would mean taxes would have to be raised.

The outlet reported that the chancellor said the tax rises would be smaller than those announced in the 2024 budget, but that she is expected to have to raise tens of billions more.

It comes after Ms Reeves said she was “totally” up to continuing as chancellor after appearing tearful at Prime Minister’s Questions.

Criticising Sir Keir for the U-turns on benefit reform during PMQs, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the chancellor looked “absolutely miserable”, and questioned whether she would remain in post until the next election.

Sir Keir did not explicitly say that she would, and Ms Badenoch interjected to say: “How awful for the chancellor that he couldn’t confirm that she would stay in place.”

In her first comments after the incident, Ms Reeves said she was having a “tough day” before adding: “People saw I was upset, but that was yesterday.

“Today’s a new day and I’m just cracking on with the job.”

Sir Keir also told Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby on Thursday that he “didn’t appreciate” that Ms Reeves was crying in the Commons.

“In PMQs, it is bang, bang, bang,” he said. “That’s what it was yesterday.

“And therefore, I was probably the last to appreciate anything else going on in the chamber, and that’s just a straightforward human explanation, common sense explanation.”