South Korea's Financial Intelligence Unit has fined cryptocurrency exchange Korbit 2.73 billion won ($1.9 million) for anti-money laundering breaches.
The regulator announced the penalty on December 31, 2025, along with an institutional warning and disciplinary measures against senior executives.
The enforcement action comes as Mirae Asset holds talks to acquire 92% of Korbit for up to 140 billion won ($97 million).
Korbit's CEO received a warning while the reporting officer faced a reprimand.
What Happened
The FIU conducted an on-site inspection of Korbit between October 16 and 29, 2024.
Regulators identified approximately 22,000 violations of the Special Financial Transactions Act.
The breaches included 12,800 customer identification failures involving unclear documents and incomplete address records.
An additional 9,100 cases involved users permitted to trade before verification was completed.
The FIU also found 19 virtual asset transfers involving three unregistered overseas service providers.
Korbit failed to conduct mandatory money laundering risk assessments before launching 655 new transaction types, including NFT services.
The sanctions review committee finalized the penalties after considering the severity of violations and Korbit's compliance record.
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Why It Matters
The enforcement action reflects South Korea's intensified regulatory oversight of cryptocurrency exchanges.
Korbit ranks as the country's fourth-largest exchange among six incorporated platforms but commands less than 1% of domestic trading volume.
The timing complicates Mirae Asset's acquisition plans, which would mark the financial group's first venture into cryptocurrency-related businesses.
The deal is being led by Mirae Asset Consulting, a non-financial affiliate designed to navigate South Korea's 2017 policy separating financial companies from crypto operations.
In November, the FIU fined Dunamu, operator of market leader Upbit, for similar violations.
South Korea's regulatory push aims to strengthen anti-money laundering capabilities and legal compliance systems to build public trust in virtual asset markets.
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