Telegram wallet’s Korean rollout sparks unregistered VASP debate

Telegram’s cryptocurrency wallet service Wallet has begun offering Korean-language services to users in South Korea, raising questions over possible unregistered operations, News1 reported. The service goes beyond simple custody by offering purchases, swaps and transfers of virtual assets, which could trigger a virtual asset service provider, or VASP, reporting requirement under South Korea’s Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information. Wallet also allows trading in perpetual futures and tokenized stocks as well as cryptocurrencies, and concerns center on whether it could be deemed an unregistered virtual asset operator for serving domestic users without reporting to South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit, according to the report.