South Korea

Upbit passes Korea crypto race post meanwhile P2P transactions surge in India

Black Friday for Korean exchanges while E-CNY launch in final stretch

All but four platforms in South Korea obligated to announce the suspension of their services by today.

Canaan reports record revenues meanwhile Korea says no to crypto tax delay

South Korea’s finance minister Hong Nam-ki gave a firm “no” at the National Assembly to lawmakers asking for crypto taxation to be delayed until the industry is fully prepared. Fast facts Minister Hong insisted the plan to tax capital gains from cryptocurrency transactions should be executed as planned. The amended tax law stipulates that crypto […]

Mid-sized crypto exchange Foblgate announced the closure of its Korean won (KRW) trading functions in advance of a government mandate banning digital asset platforms from operating cash-to-crypto services without a local bank partnership. Fast facts Foblgate announced it is temporarily suspending its KRW withdrawal, deposit and trading market between cryptocurrencies and the Korean won. Instead, […]

FTX hit by hack rumor meanwhile Korea updates crypto death note

Financial authorities reveal an updated list of virtual asset platforms that have complied with new regulations.

The Sandbox, Animoca Brand’s subsidiary for decentralized virtual gaming, announces partnership with animation studio in Korea.

At the risk of losing billions, crypto industry officials weigh options to oppose authorities.

Korea crypto damage assessed meanwhile Initium’s news based NFTs sell out

Smaller virtual asset exchanges ask for mercy as a deadline looms to commit to Korea’s new standards.

Hyperithm, a crypto investment trust company in South Korea, acquired an Information Security Management System (ISMS) certification — a requirement Korean authorities say every virtual asset operating business must secure. Fast facts Hyperithm is the first virtual asset brokerage in South Korea to be certified for information security by a public institution. Hyperithm’s announcement shows […]

Only 21 out of 60 exchanges are expected to continue their services in Korea.

Korean exchanges offered lifeline while NFL bans crypto sponsorships

Deadline looms for Korean exchanges as Doge meme valuation explodes

Crypto trading platforms rush to meet a Sept. 24 deadline, hoping to comply with new rules designed to protect investors.

Donkey, launched Sept. 1, aims to become a DeFi service that brings more South Korean investors into decentralized finance by making their favorite cryptos more scalable and available. Fast facts Donkey is a virtual asset deposit and lending protocol that runs on the Ethereum blockchain where anyone can deposit crypto as collateral and borrow other […]

China’s BSN to launch in South Korea portal as Chinese Canaan secures huge mining rig orders

The multiplayer online role-playing game is widely popular elsewhere, while Korea bans play-to-earn crypto and NFT trading.

As its first international expansion, China’s Blockchain-based Service Network is launching a portal in Korea. Who are the key players, and where else in the world will BSN emerge this year?

Three of South Korea’s four major exchanges have launched a joint venture to develop solutions for complying with the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) crypto travel rule. The travel rule sets a global standard for virtual asset service providers to combat money laundering and terrorist financing and requires exchanges to collect information on senders and […]

Korea’s love for crypto continues while Crypto exchange Bilaxy hacked

New data shows increasing deposits made by teens in virtual currency despite new rules that may close down many platforms in less than a month.

Korea’s new FSC chair speaks meanwhile Axie Infinity to work with governments

Korea reveals crypto exchange ‘Death Note’: DeFi investment booms

24 out of 63 digital currency exchanges in South Korea are not expected to meet new compliance requirements and will most likely be shut down in less than a month.

Sandbank, a South Korean bank for virtual assets, says it is in the process of acquiring the necessary certification needed to legally operate in the country. However, the financial authorities have yet to decide whether their requirements apply to crypto banks. Fast facts In an announcement, Sandbank told its customers it has put acquiring the […]

Samsung Electronics will participate in the Bank of Korea’s central bank digital currency pilot program to test the practicalities of digital currency remittances without internet availability, according to a report by the Korea Times. Fast facts An unnamed source familiar with the issue told the Korea Times: “Samsung Electronics has recently decided to participate in […]

San Francisco-based payments technology company Ripple this week announced that South Korean money transfer company, Global Money Express Co. Ltd (GME Remittance), has joined RippleNet to expand remittances between South Korea and Thailand. Fast facts Some 184,000 Thai nationals live in South Korea, and they account for the third largest group of foreign nationals in […]

K-pop superstars Brave Girls, Se7en and A.C.E. are among the latest to jump on the non-fungible token bandwagon. Are fans buying it?

Number of new South Korean crypto investors have tanked in the month of June as crypto mining investments boom outside China.

Three of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea have tightened restrictions on virtual currency trading by their employees in a move designed to comply with the nation’s crypto regulations. Fast facts Bithumb announced that starting this month, it had banned its employees from trading cryptocurrencies using Bithumb accounts. The exchange has made employees sign […]

Bithumb — South Korea’s second-largest crypto exchange — has rubbished claims that it is charging token issuers fees to list their coins on its platform.

Four executive employees of South Korean crypto exchange V Global have been arrested on charges of alleged fraud involving more than US$1.9 billion.

Samsung Asset Management, South Korea’s biggest asset manager, has launched a fund tied to a virtual world known as the metaverse.

Payment for listings raises questions over integrity of cryptocurrencies’ credit scores as compliance deadline nears.

South Korea’s presidential office has reacted defensively to a petition calling for the chief of the country’s main finance sector regulator to step down over comments he made about cryptocurrencies.

South Korean crypto exchange Upbit — the country’s biggest — is facing a lawsuit filed by a university foundation alleging patent infringement.

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Upbit is preparing legal action against crypto coin issuer Pica Project, whose tokens it has delisted from its platform.

South Korean lenders have started money laundering risk assessments of the country’s “big four” cryptocurrency exchanges, with which they have contracts to provide real-name accounts.

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission today revealed plans to ban cryptocurrency exchanges in the country from listing their own coins.

50 crypto exchanges apply for ISMS in South Korea while Hong Kong sees the birth of a blockchain passport for Covid vaccinations.

Fifty South Korean crypto exchanges have applied for certification under the country’s Information Security Management System — the first step in meeting stringent new crypto exchange regulations.

South Korean government is holding on-site visits to help crypto exchanges get regulated while an Aussie business wants crypto for rent.

South Korea’s main finance sector regulator has launched an investigation of accounts operated by crypto exchanges under false or third-party names.

Chinese social media Weibo bans crypto accounts as employees of South Korean crypto exchanges can no longer trade on their own platforms.

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission has announced plans to ban executive employees and exchange operators from trading on their own platforms, prompting a chorus of complaints. Fast Facts: The FSC’s Financial Intelligence Unit recently met with officials from cryptocurrency exchanges to explain upcoming amendments to the Act on Reporting and Use of Certain Financial Transaction Information, […]

S. Korea residents with accounts in foreign crypto exchanges may have to report their crypto holdings starting in 2022. Above what amount is taxable?

Eleven users of Upbit have filed a class action lawsuit against its owner, Dunamu Inc., seeking damages over a suspected technical failure.

South Korea is in the process of tasking a branch of the Financial Services Commission with regulating cryptocurrency exchanges.

Police in South Korea have arrested 14 individuals in a cryptocurrency fraud case estimated to have cost 69,000 investors a total of US$3.85 billion, taking the country’s losses to US$5 billion over the past five years.

Kicking the digital won’s development into higher gear, Bank of Korea is calling for bids to be a technology supplier for its digital currency (CBDC) project.

Bithumb, one of South Korea’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges, is attempting to disassociate itself from its former chairman amid fears that its links to him may pose a threat to its license to operate.

Newly elected South Korean Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum appears to be leading an embrace of the cryptocurrency sector among lawmakers.

To improve public trust, South Korea is barring police officers from buying cryptocurrency. Could this presage a broader clampdown on crypto in the country?

The Asian crypto industry reacts to the US Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service money laundering probe into Binance. In South Korea, the nation’s largest internet company plans to join Bank of Korea’s CBDC ventures. Over in Singapore, Southeast Asia’s largest lender DBS Bank expands its crypto services for its private bank clients by […]

FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried joins Forkast.News to share how the exchange is able to provide new financial products while still satisfying regulators.

As retail interest in crypto grows, countries around the world are grappling with consumer protection. Asia offers a window into the array of policy responses.

The Chia craze keeps on going while the Indian crypto industry speaks out against banks blocking crypto transactions.

Dogecoin breaks another ATH while Chinese electronics vendors say that Chia is the hottest mining project in the mainland.

The private sector-led Digital Dollar Project is planning CBDC pilots for the US. How are central bank digital currency efforts and progress different in Asia?

Binance announces its upcoming launch of an NFT marketplace while South Korean regulator asks staff to disclose personal crypto investments.

China’s internet giant Ant Group shares its OceanBase database for the e-CNY project. More investors try out DeFi platform PancakeSwap.

Crypto investors in South Korea stir petitions to unseat the nation’s financial watchdog chief for his anti-crypto remarks.

Angered by cryptocurrency tax laws and a government official’s remarks on crypto investing, over 51,000 South Koreans are trying to push back via petitions.

Asia adds to global Dogecoin froth, investors buy into the meme-currency ahead of US hours. South Korea kicks off a crackdown on illicit crypto use.

Bitcoin booms to new all-time highs but Asian retail investors are wooed by higher gains in altcoins while Binance tokenizes Coinbase.

Ahead of Coinbase’s Nasdaq listing, Bitcoin surged to new highs in Asian trading hours. Ether, ADA and DOGE also reached new ATHs as altcoins soared.

As Bitcoin and crypto market swells beyond $2 trillion, even crypto-friendly Singapore is warning the public about risks. Are more regulations coming?

Government dismay at crypto frenzy in South Korea brings the country’s Bitcoin premium down a few notches. But despite threats and policy chills, it’s only got more South Koreans interested in the dizzying crypto world.

After surging to 21%, the higher prices that South Koreans pay for Bitcoin are now plunging. What role did Korean regulators and overseas traders play?