South Korea Fines Crypto Exchange Korbit $1.89M After AML Breaches
South Korea's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) imposed an institutional warning and fines totaling ₩27.3 billion ($1.89 million) on crypto exchange Korbit for violations of anti-money laundering (AML) regulations following an on-site inspection in October 2024. These sanctions were finalized on December 31 after a sanctions review committee.
The FIU identified about 22,000 violations related to customer due diligence and transaction-restriction obligations. Specifically, 12,800 cases involved failures in customer identification and 9,100 cases involved breaches of transaction-restriction rules. Korbit allowed trading to customers who had incomplete identity verification and to those whose money-laundering risk ratings were upgraded without conducting additional checks.
Regulators also found 19 crypto asset transfers involving three overseas virtual asset service providers (VASPs) that were not registered under South Korean law, a violation of the Specified Financial Transaction Information Act. Additionally, 655 violations pertained to Korbit's failure to conduct money-laundering risk assessments before launching new products, including NFT-related services.
Senior management faced disciplinary actions: the CEO received a formal caution, and the compliance reporting officer was reprimanded. Further procedural steps, including opportunities for Korbit to submit opinions, will determine final disciplinary details.
Separately, Mirae Asset Group has commenced talks to acquire Korbit through its consulting arm. Discussions are ongoing under a memorandum of understanding with Korbit's major shareholders. Korbit is primarily owned by NXC, which holds about 60.5%, while SK Planet owns approximately 31.5%.
