South Korea Plans Sanctions Against KuCoin, Others: Report

UPDATE (March 27, 13:20 UTC): Removes BitMEX from headline, story after Hankyung updated its report to remove the exchange. A previous version of this article included BitMEX, following Hankyung's coverage.

South Korean financial authorities are planning sanctions against crypto exchanges that are operating illegally in the country, business newspaper Hankyung reported on Friday.

The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) classified a number of exchanges who are not registered as Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) as targets for sanctions, according to a machine-translated version of the report.

The exchanges targeted — KuCoin, CoinW, Bitunix and KCEX — have been found to be operating Korean-language websites without reporting to the FIU, according to the report. For that reason, they are classed as illegal businesses, as per the country's regulations, Hankyung said.

"We are currently reviewing blocking access to unreported overseas exchanges that are providing services to domestic investors through consultation with the Korea Communications Standards Commission," an FIU official said, according to the translation of the report.

"We are organizing damage cases and related data to strengthen communication between authorities, and we expect to see tangible measures taken within this year."

Last month, South Korean crypto exchange Upbit was prohibited from allowing new customers to transfer assets to its platform for three months due to non-compliance with its obligations as a regulated provider.

KuCoin commented: "We are closely monitoring regulatory developments across all jurisdictions, including Korea, and will fully cooperate with any regulatory requirements," it said in a statement over Telegram.

Read More: Crypto Exchange Bithumb Raided by South Korean Prosecutors Over Embezzlement Allegations: Report

UPDATE (March 24, 16:30 UTC): Adds KuCoin response and adds that quotes from the Hankyung article are based on a machine-translated version of the report.