The South Korean Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) has imposed a substantial 2.73 billion won ($1.98 million) penalty on cryptocurrency exchange Korbit for failures in its Anti-Money Laundering (AML) systems. The fine, settled in February 2025, follows a comprehensive inspection and underscores the regulator's rigorous enforcement of compliance protocols. Korbit has paid the fine in full, accepting the FIU's findings.
This action is part of a broader regulatory sweep within South Korea's maturing legal framework, which includes the Virtual Asset User Protection Act that took effect in July 2024. The FIU's move signals that established exchanges remain under intense scrutiny, with the penalty serving as a corrective measure aimed at systemic market improvement rather than punitive shutdown.
Concurrently, a significant policy shift is underway in South Korea. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) is reportedly preparing new guidelines that would, for the first time since 2017, allow corporations and professional investors to allocate up to 5% of their equity capital to cryptocurrencies. Investments would be restricted to the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market cap and five regulated exchanges, potentially unlocking large capital flows from firms like Naver.
Globally, regulatory approaches are diverging. In the United Kingdom, senior lawmakers are calling for a ban on cryptocurrency donations to political parties, citing difficulties in tracing the true source of funds, even as the country moves to implement comprehensive crypto regulation by 2027. Meanwhile, India's Financial Intelligence Unit has mandated stricter identity checks for crypto exchange users, requiring live selfies with blinking, GPS location, and IP address verification, while banning support for ICOs and privacy tools like mixers.
