ChainCatcher news, according to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean financial authorities recently investigated several virtual asset service providers (VASP) that are closing or suspending operations and found serious violations. During on-site inspections from May 20 to 23, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and the Financial Supervisory Service discovered that 7 out of the 10 inspected VASPs failed to properly return user assets.In addition, 3 companies showed significant deficiencies in guiding users, only contacting users with assets exceeding 1 million won (approximately 732 USD). These VASPs have also been criticized for restricting users from withdrawing to overseas exchanges or personal wallets and charging high fees in the process. South Korean authorities have clearly stated that they will take strict measures against these violations.

ChainCatcher news reports that Binance CEO Richard Teng recently made a secret visit to South Korea. It is reported that Teng is directly communicating with South Korean financial authorities to resolve the stagnation issue regarding entry into South Korea. Binance acquired Gopax at the end of 2022 to enter the South Korean market. However, the company has faced difficulties in entering the South Korean market due to the financial authorities not approving the changes to Gopax's virtual asset business registration for over a year.The South Korean Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) has also requested that Gopax's partner bank, Jeonbuk Bank, submit a plan for improving Gopax's governance and execution by the end of March. In response, Gopax sent a request to its "GoFI" users last month to convert bonds into shares. The aim is to reduce Binance's stake in the company by increasing the shareholding of high-frequency users.Richard Teng is expected to discuss these governance improvement measures with the authorities during his visit.

ChainCatcher news, according to News 1, financial authorities are introducing a system to suspend the review of virtual asset service providers (VASP), aimed at providing reasons for the suspension of reviews. The launch of this plan is due to administrative inefficiency, as there have been instances of excessively long review times since last year.The financial intelligence agency has also established a "Virtual Asset Business Reporting Review Committee." Currently, the committee operates only as an advisory body, but by stipulating the committee in the "Implementation Order of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act," the financial intelligence agency plans to further improve the virtual asset business reporting system. An official from the financial intelligence agency stated, "We are currently preparing the groundwork to detail the reporting system for virtual asset enterprises and will disclose it through legislative previews."

ChainCatcher news, according to DeCenter, South Korean financial authorities have begun to formulate regulatory rules regarding the misuse of cryptocurrency "mixers" as a means of money laundering by illegal organizations. A related person from the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the South Korean Financial Services Commission stated: "If cryptocurrency is put into a mixer, tracking funds and monitoring crimes will become very troublesome. We believe the risk of money laundering through mixers is very high. After the United States introduced mixer regulations last year, South Korea has also begun to consider this. Regulating cryptocurrency mixers requires international cooperation."

ChainCatcher news, according to Yonhap News Agency, a senior official from South Korea's financial authorities stated on Sunday that after the United States approved exchange-traded funds (ETFs) linked to the spot price of Bitcoin, South Korean financial authorities will not review the necessity of such funds. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) of South Korea previously stated that trading Bitcoin ETFs may be illegal in South Korea. Bank of Korea Governor Lee Chang-yong told reporters that Bitcoin has become a risky investment asset.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, lawmakers have submitted a memorandum urging key financial authorities, including the Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Board and the Acting Comptroller of the Currency, to provide guidance or take action to clarify that the SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 121 (SAB 121) is unenforceable following a recent decision by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).Lawmakers pointed out in the document that SAB 121 should not have legal effect, and that federal banking agencies and the National Credit Union Administration should not require banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions that provide custody services for digital assets to comply.It is reported that SAB 121 stipulates that cryptocurrency assets of bank customers should be held on the bank's balance sheet to reflect the value of the assets and requires maintaining capital against these assets. Industry insiders and Republican lawmakers believe that the regulation jeopardizes the willingness of regulated banks to act as custodians for cryptocurrencies, and that its treatment of cryptocurrency holdings is different from that of other assets.

ChainCatcher news, according to News1, South Korean financial authorities have notified existing virtual asset operators to report any changes in their location or registered foreign executives.It is reported that previously, reporting to the authorities was only required when there were changes in the address or executives of the virtual asset operators. Industry insiders believe that this change by the authorities is related to Binance's acquisition of Gopax.

ChainCatcher news, according to Decenter, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the South Korean Financial Services Commission has announced sanctions against Delio, including a three-month suspension of all operations, a fine of 1.896 billion won (approximately 1.44 million USD), and the dismissal of an executive.The FIU stated that Delio transferred customers' virtual assets 171 times for unreported foreign virtual asset operators and supported unreported virtual asset operators in storing virtual assets. Additionally, Delio failed to conduct anti-money laundering risk assessments before offering new products and services, violating customer identification obligations.

ChainCatcher news, the Chosun Ilbo reports that South Korean financial authorities will begin research on the second phase of virtual asset legislation as early as this month. The research will include solutions to conflicts of interest in the issuance and circulation of virtual assets, a regulatory framework for stablecoins, a disciplinary system for virtual asset evaluation and consulting industries, as well as unified standards for the circulation and issuance of virtual assets. (Source link)

ChainCatcher news, according to Newspim, South Korean financial regulators have suspended the review of the executive change report submitted by Gopax on March 7, which contains information about the appointment of three Binance members as internal directors of Gopax. The industry expects that, due to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's allegations against Binance for violating the Securities Act and its application to freeze assets, South Korean authorities are unlikely to process this change report.In response, relevant personnel from South Korea's financial regulatory agency stated, "The acceptance of the change report is currently under internal review, so we must speak cautiously. However, it is necessary to observe the SEC's movements. Although the Special Financial Transactions Act does not include conflicts of interest for major shareholders, I understand that the Political Affairs Committee has proposed to amend the law to review large company shareholders like the Corporate Governance Act." Therefore, it is expected that the financial authorities' acceptance of the Gopax operator change report will be delayed. If Binance's acquisition of Gopax fails, the withdrawal of GoFi deposit assets may be interrupted. (source link)

According to ChainCatcher news, the Korea Daily reported that South Korean financial authorities stated that Binance's governance structure, operational methods, and accounting systems for its trading platform business in the country are opaque, posing risks of illegal money laundering and other financial crimes, and they are currently reviewing these operations.It is reported that earlier this month, Binance planned to enter the country by acquiring a 40% stake in Gopax, the fifth largest exchange in South Korea. The main executives of Gopax have been replaced by Binance personnel, and financial authorities have requested Gopax to reapply as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) or to regulate Gopax by not providing real-name accounts through commercial banks. Currently, Jeonbuk Bank, which provides real-name accounts to Gopax, is considering whether to continue offering real-name accounts after Binance's acquisition officially takes effect. (Source link)

ChainCatcher news, according to South Korean media Hankyung, the South Korean financial authorities will announce guidelines related to Security Token Offerings (STO) on February 6.Previously, the Financial Services Commission of South Korea issued instructions to the heads of the country's five major cryptocurrency exchanges (Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax) to classify "tokenized securities" in trading and revoke their listing qualifications. DAXA plans to gather opinions from each company through a trading support subcommittee, expecting to collect the first batch of opinions and feedback by February 9 and submit them to the Financial Services Commission. (source link)