South Korea to Block 27 Illegal Crypto Exchange Sites as Regulator Expands Crackdown to Websites

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South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit said on October 13 it will block access to the websites of 27 unregistered virtual asset service providers operating illegally in the country.

According to the FIU, the Korea Communications Standards Commission held two rounds of deliberations on October 6 and October 7 and decided to block access to or terminate use of 27 sites run by unregistered crypto operators. Sites with servers or operators in South Korea will be subject to service termination, while sites based overseas will be blocked from domestic access. The measure applies to sites for which the FIU requested action and that were confirmed to still be operating.

Until now, financial authorities had barred unregistered operators from allowing users to newly install or update mobile applications through app marketplaces including Google and Apple. The latest decision expands the crackdown to websites.