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- South Korean authorities disrupt $101.7 million crypto money laundering scheme.
- Three individuals referred to prosecutors over illicit cryptocurrency transactions.
- South Korea intensifies efforts to prevent illegal financial activities.
South Korean authorities have successfully disrupted a major international money laundering operation, which processed 148.9 billion won ($101.7 million) through cryptocurrency and local banks. The Korea Customs Service (KCS) disclosed that three persons have been prosecuted for violating the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act.
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Complex Scheme Involved Multi-Jurisdictional Crypto Transactions
Yonhap News Agency reports that the operation between September 2021 and June 2025 involved the masquerading of legal expenditures, such as cosmetic surgery and tuition fees. The suspects had an elaborate web of crypto assets that they had bought across jurisdictions.
These assets were moved to South Korean crypto wallets, where they were exchanged for domestic currency and distributed across multiple accounts at South Korean banks to evade detection.
Authorities Strengthen Efforts to Combat Illicit Financial Activity
This enforcement measure concerns South Korea, where greater efforts are being made to surveil and crack down on illegal foreign exchange activity. The KCS announced on January 13 that it was conducting year-round intensive inspections of underground money exchange operations that may disrupt the country’s exchange rates. This move comes after increasing worries over the variation in the foreign exchange flows of the country, with the discrepancy between the trade proceeds recorded by the banks and the reported goods of up to 290 billion in 2025, the highest inconsistency in five years.
There was also another inspection in the same year, which found that 97 percent of businesses in a given industry were involved in illegal activities totaling 2.2 trillion won.
As the crypto market in South Korea rapidly transforms, with a valuation of 95 trillion won ($64.6 billion) by mid-2025, the government’s crackdown indicates increased attention to regulating the digital asset environment. Such initiatives are essential because the government seeks to curb illegal money flows and safeguard economic balance in a more digital financial environment.
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