FIU to penalize major South Korean crypto exchanges for AML violations

South Korean financial authorities are preparing to impose sanctions on a series of domestic virtual asset exchanges for anti-money laundering violations, Newsis reported. The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) is expected to issue institutional and personnel sanctions, as well as fines, following on-site inspections that began in August 2024 with Upbit's operator, Dunamu, and later included Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax. The penalties will likely be finalized on a first-in, first-out basis, corresponding to the inspection schedule. The inspections took place at Dunamu in August 2024, Korbit in October, Gopax in December, Bithumb in March 2025, and Coinone in April.