[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] Seoul, September 16, 2025 — South Korea’s major cryptocurrency exchanges are increasingly hiring former officials from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) to reinforce their compliance frameworks and regulatory response capabilities.



According to industry sources and the Ministry of Personnel Management, Bithumb recently recruited a former FSS Grade-4 official, who joined the company this month as a department head. The new executive is expected to oversee investor protection.



This is not Bithumb’s first such hire. In February, the company brought in two Grade-3 team leaders from the FSS as senior executives. Last year, it also hired a Grade-3 and a Grade-4 former FSS official as director and team leader, respectively.



Bithumb is currently preparing for a KOSDAQ listing in April next year, with Samsung Securities serving as lead underwriter. The company has also spun off a new entity, Bithumb A, as part of its restructuring efforts. With the dual challenge of strengthening financial performance and building credibility in the IPO market, the firm is actively recruiting former regulators with extensive inspection and compliance experience.



The trend extends to Dunamu, operator of Korea’s leading exchange Upbit. In June, the Public Officials Ethics Committee approved the employment of two former FSS officials at Dunamu — a Grade-3 senior investigator, now serving as a department head, and a Grade-4 senior investigator, now appointed as a team leader.



In total, five former FSS officials have moved to Bithumb and Dunamu this year alone, matching last year’s scale of recruitment.

 

 

 

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