South Korea

FATF’s travel rule is looming over the crypto industry as an existential threat, writes Jack Jia of Unlimit. Here’s why it’s especially worrying to DeFi and self-custody wallet users.

A former executive at Coinone pleaded guilty on Thursday to accepting bribes in exchange for listing certain cryptocurrencies on the platform.

South Korean lawmakers unanimously approved a new bill requiring public officials to disclose their crypto holdings to be implemented in December.

Only 4.2% of South Korean citizens have said that they regularly use metaverse services, a recent survey results show.

For crypto to grow for the long term, the industry must show greater respect for global standards that combat crime, writes Slava Demchuk of AMLBot.

While U.S. regulators continue debating over whether cryptocurrencies are securities or commodities, the digital assets industry is being pleasantly welcomed by several Asian cities. And the competition is really hotting up now.

A South Korean ruling party lawmaker proposed all public officials and candidates disclose their crypto holdings in a new bill unveiled last Friday.

Investors remain cautious as U.S. debt talks continue despite slowing inflation and large NFT purchases.

South Korean prosecutors have raided Upbit, Bithumb and the crypto wallet unit of Kakao, as part of their investigation into lawmaker Kim Nam-kuk.

Bank of Korea, the central bank, seems uncomfortable with the Financial Services Commission, the country’s regulator, having the mandate over the cryptocurrency industry. The bank is pushing for more say, arguing crypto can influence the stability of the overall financial market and that involves the central bank.

Terraform Labs co-founder Shin Hyun-seung and seven others will face trial on May 26 on charges of fraud related to the Terra-Luna crypto collapse.

A South Korean court has approved prosecutors’ request to freeze assets and properties worth 233.3 billion Korean won that belong to Kwon.

The prosecutor leading Korea’s investigation into the Terra-Luna project said its founder Do Kwon should be extradited to Seoul to face trial.

South Korea’s legislation on how to regulate digital assets passed the first phase of review in the country’s National Assembly on Tuesday.

South Korean exchange GDAC has suspended withdrawals and deposits after losing over US$13.1 million in Bitcoin, Ether, Wemix and USDT in a hack.

The arrested crypto fugitive Kwon Do-hyung has “zero ” identifiable assets in his native South Korea, prosecutors said on Friday.

Alchemy Pay is eyeing expansion in South Korea following its US$10 million funding from blockchain investment firm DWF Labs.

Taking bribes in exchange for listing cryptocurrencies has been common practice among South Korean exchanges, one expert told Forkast.

A former employee of the Coinone exchange was arrested Tuesday on charges of accepting bribes in exchange for listing certain cryptocurrencies.

South Korean singer G-Dragon has launched an NFT collection on OpenSea in collaboration with Fandom Studio.

South Korean prosecutors are investigating Lee Sang-jun, the CEO of Bithumb’s holding company, for alleged bribery in listing certain tokens on the platform.

South Korea is investing 27.7 billion Korean won (US$21 million) into local services looking to utilize the metaverse, the ministry of science announced Wednesday, following Tuesday’s news that it would establish a US$30 million metaverse fund to help startups expand their businesses. See related article: Japanese tech, finance firms sign pact to build metaverse economic […]

The Korea Customs Service has identified US$4.3 billion worth of illegal foreign currency transactions last year involving cryptocurrencies.

South Korea will expand the existing law on voice phishing to include crypto related phone scams.

Lotte Group plans to expand its non-fungible token (NFT) business onto the global market through a partnership with the Polygon blockchain.

South Korean blockchain game developer Wemade’s WEMIX token surged after it was relisted on local crypto exchange Coinone on Thursday.

S.Korean regulators are planning to review crypto staking services on local exchanges following recent regulatory enforcements from the SEC.

2023 could be the defining year for crypto regulation – but who’s leading the race to regulation and what’s the best way about it?

Top blockchain and crypto news: GOPAX deal sees Binance return to South Korea. Inflation fight spooks crypto markets. Chinese liquor giant gives cheers to NFTs.

Prosecutors flew to Serbia earlier this month as part of an investigation into Terraform Labs chief Do Kwon, who faces fraud accusations related to the US$40 billion collapse of his Terra-Luna cryptocurrency project in May last year.

Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com has partnered with Korean drama distributor Studio Dragon to issue NFTs inspired by popular Korean drama series, including the hit Crash Landing on You, the exchange said on Monday.

South Korea published guidelines on Monday for defining what specific cryptocurrencies would fall under regulations applicable to financial securities.

A South Korean court approved the prosecutor’s request to issue an arrest warrant for Kang Jong-hyun for alleged embezzlement.

South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service has recommended a unified system for mandatory disclosure from issuers of cryptocurrencies.

The South Korean Ministry of Justice (MOJ) announced Thursday that it will adopt a cryptocurrency tracking system within the first half of 2023.

Prosecutors raided the Bithumb crypto exchange on Thursday on allegations of price manipulation and fraudulent transactions in local tokens,

Busan, South Korea’s second-largest city, announced Thursday that it will launch a digital commodities exchange in the second half of this year.

S. Korea’s capital city opened the first stage of ‘Metaverse Seoul’ on Monday, which it claims is the first city-backed public metaverse in the world.

A South Korean court ruled against the release of a blockchain P2E game last Friday after determining that in-game NFTs promote speculation.

Lee Byung-gul, the CEO of V Global, will serve 25 years in prison after his conviction was upheld by the Supreme Court of Korea on Friday.

South Korea’s attempts to extradite the founder of the collapsed Terra-Luna stablecoin will remain hamstrung while the courts in Seoul dispute the charges against him.

PayProtocol, the South Korean issuer of payments-focused cryptocurrency Paycoin (PCI), will reapply for a local license to stay in business.

Binance declined to comment on reports in local media that it is in late stage talks to acquire South Korean digital asset exchange GOPAX.

A group of S.Korean hackers stole 8.5 billion Korean won (US$6.7 million) worth of cryptocurrencies from Kim Jung-ju, the late founder of Nexon.

South Korea took a real shine to the metaverse in 2022, with the central government, regions and cities all interested in getting a piece of the virtual reality pie, despite criticism that the technology has a long way to go.

As crypto investors move towards self-custody following FTX’s collapse, Brian Paik wonders whether it could teach people the true value of Bitcoin, beyond hype and price speculation.

Busan announced the steering committee for its flagship exchange, but it didn’t include global partners earlier linked to the project.

South Korea’s Gyeongbuk Province plans to use the metaverse to expand economic and other relations with Vietnam.

An official in the South Korean city of Busan said the authorities have received no confirmation that Binance has pulled out of a partnership to establish the country’s first city-backed crypto exchange, as reported by local media.

Wemade Co. filed an immediate appeal against the court’s Dec. 7 decision that rejected the developer’s request to disallow four of the nation’s largest crypto exchanges from delisting its native cryptocurrency, WEMIX.

S.Korean authorities may mandate companies to pursue direct approval from regulators to list their crypto on local digital assets exchanges.

Interpol fugitive Kwon Do-hyung flew to the Republic of Serbia last month, South Korean prosecutors told Forkast, confirming local media reports.

Wemade, a S.Korean blockchain game maker, announced that it will buyback and burn US$10 million worth of its WEMIX token to stabilize its value.

The South Korean blockchain game maker’s WEMIX cryptocurrency will be removed from the country’s four major cryptocurrency exchanges that collectively account for more than 95% of the country’s crypto trading volume.

A Seoul court has dismissed the injunction filed by Wemade Co. Ltd. to stop four local digital asset exchanges from delisting WEMIX cryptocurrency

The Bank of Korea (BOK) claimed it needs the authority to monitor and supervise stablecoins, according to the South Korean central bank’s report published on Monday.

The majority (58.3%) of South Koreans with assets of 1 billion Korean won (US$760,000) said they don’t plan to invest in cryptocurrencies.

Wemade Co. Ltd. said its in talks to have Binance Institutional Services take custody of its native cryptocurrency, WEMIX.

Following a hearing on Friday, the court is expected to finalize its decision on an injunction Wemade filed against four exchanges.

Daesung’s venture capital subsidiary recently established a fund worth 110 billion Korean won (US$84.5 million) for expanding investments into metaverse startups.

Shinhan has opened a metaverse to provide financial and non-financial services, claiming to be the first bank in the country to provide such a platform.

A court in South Korea will review if prosecutors are allowed to arrest and bring Terraform cofounder Daniel Shin and seven others into custody, for charges including fraud.

The blockchain game maker fights delisting of its symbolic WEMIX crypto token.

South Korea’s science ministry released a guideline of core ethical principles for metaverse application participants.

Companies based in the U.S. and South Korea have filed for more than 75% of patent applications related to the metaverse, VR and AR.

The delisting poses a great obstacle to the game maker’s growing blockchain empire, while Wemade’s CEO blames the crypto exchange

While the crypto industry grapples with the definition of blockchain-based digital tokens, South Korea wants to nail down the terminology.

South Korea’s telecommunications giant SK Telecom (SKT) is launching its Ifland metaverse in 49 countries in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

South Korea’s FSC is considering a requirement that crypto exchanges offset investor losses for the sudden suspension of withdrawal services.

S.Korean authorities are looking into self-issued cryptocurrencies that may exist within local exchanges following FTX.com’s FTT-led liquidity crisis.

South Korea, Singapore and Japan were the biggest users of FTX.com based on the number of monthly unique visitors from January to October 2022

Terra cofounder Daniel Shin reportedly told S.Korean prosecutors during an investigation on Thursday that he did not sell LUNA at a high point.