Bithumb may face sanctions for violating South Korea’s Specific Financial Transaction Information Act. The Korea Financial Intelligence Unit has issued a preliminary notice to Bithumb, proposing sanctions for failing to comply with anti-money laundering obligations. The Anti-Money Laundering Sanctions Review Committee will decide on March 16. The proposed measures include a six-month partial suspension of operations and a warning to the CEO.
This penalty is expected to be harsher than Upbit’s earlier sanction, which involved a three-month partial suspension and a 35.2 billion won fine. Industry observers anticipate Bithumb’s penalty could reach around 37 billion won, depending on the count of unreported overseas transactions. Under the enforcement rules, repeat violations within three years can increase fines by 10%, which could affect Bithumb’s final penalty.
Upbit was fined 35.2 billion won for failing to report 44,900 transactions, while Korbit, with 19 unreported transactions, received a 2.7 billion won fine and an institutional warning. This framework underscores the growing emphasis on AML compliance for crypto exchanges in Korea.
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