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Crypto exchanges have been operating without registering as VASPs. Despite not following local regulations, they continue to operate their businesses, such as marketing to South Korean clients and running websites registered in the country. This finding has prompted the South Korean government to investigate how many exchanges operate without approvals.
The FIU stated that it is investigating ways to block exchanges that do not follow the rules. The FIU is contacting the Korean Communications Standards Commission (KCSC) to find out how it could block access to exchange websites.
The FIU has compiled a list of exchanges engaging in activities such as customer support and marketing while not reporting their VASP status to authorities to tighten security in the country. The exchanges include Bitmex, KuCoin, KCEX, Bitunix, and CoinW. The FIU is double-checking whether these exchanges broke the roles before advancing to blocking access to their exchanges. The FIU further wants to use this to improve communication between different agencies.
The FIU said, “We are currently reviewing access blocking measures for unreported overseas exchanges that are providing services to domestic investors.”
 
South Korean Law requires any company trading, managing, or holding crypto custody to register with the FIU. Failure to abide by the rules can result in sanctions and criminal penalties.
The KCSC has been tasked with restricting internet access to the exchanges. The KCSC oversees internet regulation and may create an ISP block or even a DNS filter for the offending websites.
On March 20, South Korean prosecutors raided Bithumb CEO Kim Dae-sik for using company funds to buy an apartment for himself. South Korean officials believe the company broke financial laws while purchasing the condo. However, Bithumb responded that Kim had taken out a loan since the raid to repay the apartment he purchased.
North Korea, meanwhile, has been accused of breaking financial rules. The Lazarus group has hacked exchanges and carried out some of history’s largest crypto bank robberies. South Korea may feel emboldened to crack down on the crypto industry to prevent money laundering and limit criminal enterprises from supporting North Korean hackers extracting wealth from the country.
Source: https://zycrypto.com/south-korea-seeks-to-block-exchanges-including-bitmex-for-not-registering-as-a-virtual-asset-provider/