Korean Customs Service Busts Illegal Foreign Exchange Case Using Virtual Assets, Involving Approximately 140 Billion Korean Won

BlockBeats News, January 19th. The Seoul Customs Office of the Korea Customs Service recently reported that a case of large-scale illegal foreign exchange using virtual assets has been transferred to the prosecutor's office. The investigation revealed that the implicated group conducted illegal foreign exchanges using domestic and overseas virtual asset accounts over the past 4 years, with a total amount of approximately 140 billion Korean won ($95 million), collecting transaction fees in the process, suspected of violating the Foreign Exchange Transaction Act.

The Customs Office disclosed that the group received client funds through WeChat Pay, Alipay, and other methods, purchased virtual assets in multiple overseas countries, transferred them to wallets within Korea, exchanged them for Korean won, and then withdrew cash. The individuals involved include three people, including a Chinese man in his 30s. The related funds were used for trade payments, duty-free purchases, tuition fees, as well as funds of unknown origin, as long as a transaction fee was paid to assist in the foreign exchange.