According to officials, the violations included inadequate customer identity verification, insufficient monitoring of suspicious transactions, and dealings with overseas virtual asset service providers that were not registered in South Korea.
South Korean financial regulators have fined cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb approximately 36.8 billion won ($24.6 million) and imposed a six-month partial suspension of certain operations after finding violations of the country’s anti-money-laundering (AML) rules, authorities said Monday.
The penalty was issued by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), which operates under the Financial Services Commission. Regulators said the exchange failed to meet key AML and know-your-customer (KYC) requirements designed to prevent illicit financial activity on digital asset platforms.
According to officials, the violations included inadequate customer identity verification, insufficient monitoring of suspicious transactions, and dealings with overseas virtual asset service providers that were not registered in South Korea. Authorities also cited lapses in reporting potentially suspicious transfers as required under the country’s financial transaction reporting laws.
As part of the sanctions, regulators ordered a six-month partial business suspension targeting services for newly registered users, while most services for existing customers — including trading and deposits — will continue to operate.
The FIU said the enforcement action followed a regulatory inspection conducted as part of a broader review of the country’s major crypto exchanges. South Korean authorities have increased oversight of digital asset platforms in recent years as the market expands and concerns about money laundering and consumer protection grow.
The disciplinary package may also include formal warnings to senior management and potential removal of compliance officers responsible for regulatory reporting, according to industry reports.
Bithumb said it would cooperate with regulators and review the decision through the formal administrative process, adding that it plans to address deficiencies identified during the inspection and strengthen internal compliance systems.
The crackdown highlights South Korea’s increasingly strict regulatory stance toward cryptocurrency exchanges. Authorities have previously imposed fines and temporary operational restrictions on other domestic platforms after finding similar AML compliance gaps.
Despite the sanctions, analysts say the partial suspension is unlikely to halt Bithumb’s overall operations but could slow its ability to attract new customers during the penalty period. The exchange remains one of South Korea’s largest digital asset trading platforms by volume and user base.
Regulators say the enforcement action underscores their commitment to ensuring that virtual asset service providers operate under the same anti-money-laundering standards required of traditional financial institutions.
