South Korea widens crackdown, blocks websites of 27 unregistered crypto exchanges
Regulation & Gov ·
Regulators extend last year's app restrictions to full website blocks on platforms including KuCoin, MEXC and BitMart.
South Korea's Financial Intelligence Unit has moved to cut off web access for 27 cryptocurrency exchanges operating without local registration, a step beyond the mobile-app restrictions imposed on the same platforms last year, according to CoinDesk. The list of affected exchanges includes KuCoin, MEXC and BitMart, with other reporting in the cluster naming BingX and Phemex among those caught by the order as well.
The restrictions followed reviews conducted on October 6 and 7 by the Korea Communications Standards Commission, which approved the FIU's request. Platforms run from outside South Korea will have their websites blocked, while any operating domestically face outright service termination. Unlike earlier enforcement, authorities no longer need to wait for a court ruling or proof that customers have already lost money before acting — they can pursue a block as soon as unregistered activity is identified.
No end date or registration deadline has been set for the 27 exchanges. To operate legally and serve South Korean customers, foreign platforms must register with the FIU and satisfy the country's security and anti-money-laundering standards. Currently only 28 virtual asset service providers hold that registration, a narrow contrast to the 27 now being blocked. The FIU has also referred 44 unregistered operators to investigators and says it will pursue fresh blocks against any exchange that resurfaces under a different web address.
KuCoin responded by saying it respects applicable laws across jurisdictions and is reinforcing its compliance framework, adding that user assets remain safe and that further updates will come through official channels. BitMart, Phemex and MEXC had not responded to comment requests at the time of reporting. The FIU said it would coordinate with the Digital Asset eXchange Alliance, an industry group, to help customers on blocked platforms recover their funds where access issues arise, and repeated its call for investors to confirm registration status and withdraw assets from unauthorized exchanges.
The crackdown comes as South Korea's Digital Asset Basic Law, which would formalize rules for issuance, trading, custody and supervision, remains pending. It follows April rule changes from the Financial Services Commission and Financial Supervisory Service that removed exchanges' discretion to let users skip mandated holding periods. Separate reporting on the order has also appeared via wublockchain.xyz and etoday.co.kr. Still unclear is how long the website blocks will remain in place, whether any of the 27 exchanges will pursue registration, and how the policy intersects with reports that South Korean investors have been moving large sums of crypto overseas in recent months.