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Bithumb Exchange Faces Operational Restrictions and Receives $24.6 Million Fine, 2026/03/16 16:58:24
The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of South Korea has imposed a fine of 36.8 billion won (approximately $24.6 million) on Bithumb, the country’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange. This penalty marks the largest ever levied against a South Korean crypto exchange. Additionally, Bithumb has been ordered to restrict its operations for a period of six months.
From March 27 to September 26, Bithumb is prohibited from processing external cryptocurrency transfers for new clients. The agency clarified that new users will not be able to transfer crypto assets outside the platform. However, existing customers still retain the ability to trade and move funds within the platform. The CEO of Bithumb has received a warning from the FIU, while the compliance officer of the exchange has been suspended for six months.
The regulator accused the platform of “numerous violations of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws.” According to the FIU, the exchange has committed approximately 6.65 million legal infractions. About 3.55 million of these cases are related to the lack of mandatory customer identity verification, while another 3.04 million involve the failure to block suspicious transactions.
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Furthermore, it was revealed that Bithumb conducted 45,772 cryptocurrency transfers associated with 18 unregistered foreign virtual asset providers, which contravenes South Korean laws, according to the regulator.
Violations were identified during inspections of the five largest cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea — Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax. These inspections took place from 2024 to 2025.
In early February of this year, Bithumb mistakenly transferred 2,000 bitcoins to several hundred clients during an airdrop of KRW coins instead of the intended 2,000 KRW tokens. The regulator has initiated an investigation into the incident, suspecting the exchange of liquidity issues.
