South Korea’s leading exchange Bithumb has extended the delisting watchlist period for KernelDAO (KERNEL), while separately placing Polaris Share (POLA) under review, even as the company behind POLA landed a $7 million government AI contract.
The KERNEL extension was announced after the KernelDAO team submitted an official explanation addressing the initial designation. Bithumb’s review committee requires more time to evaluate the response, signaling that the project has not yet fully satisfied listing criteria. The extension prolongs uncertainty for KERNEL holders, as delisting from the won-based trading hub could severely reduce liquidity and accessibility.
Meanwhile, Polaris Office – the firm behind the POLA token – won a 9.6 billion won (≈$7 million) initiative under South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT. The project aims to develop lightweight, low-power AI models for document collaboration, positioning it as a digital sovereignty effort. However, Bithumb placed POLA on its delisting watchlist after finding “significant deficiencies” in business progress, token adoption, and community activity. This creates a stark contrast between the company’s enterprise success and its blockchain venture’s struggles.
Both cases underscore Bithumb’s rigorous compliance stance, reflecting tighter standards across Korean exchanges driven by regulatory pressure from the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit. The outcomes will directly affect the tokens’ market viability, with delisting potentially erasing key on-ramps for domestic investors.
