South Korea's Financial Intelligence Unit discovered between 500,000 to 600,000 potential KYC violations on the nation's largest crypto exchange, Upbit. This could lead to significant fines and delay in license renewal.
Scale of KYC Violations
According to a report by the local Maeil Business Newspaper, the Financial Intelligence Unit found potential KYC breaches during an onsite inspection for Upbit's business license renewal.
Implications for Upbit
Due to potential violations, Upbit faces a fine of 100 million Korean won, equal to $71,500 per case, which could total around $35.8 billion.
Response from South Korean Authorities
An Upbit official told Maeil Business that sharing information on matters being processed by the FIU is prohibited by the Special Financial Transaction Information Act. South Korean financial authorities have yet to conclude how these issues will affect Upbit’s business license renewal.
South Korea is currently reinforcing its requirements for cryptocurrency platforms concerning KYC and AML, placing exchanges under strict compliance standards.
