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Photo: Bithumb |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] South Korea’s financial authorities are reportedly moving toward imposing sanctions on cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb over its practice of sharing order books with overseas exchanges. Analysts note that recent regulatory actions against BingX—a foreign exchange previously linked to Bithumb—may have been a preparatory measure signaling potential penalties for Bithumb. The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) officially designated BingX as an unregistered virtual asset service provider (VASP) and cut off its connections with domestic exchanges.
According to an exclusive report by Dailian on January 20, the FIU is currently reviewing potential sanctions related to Bithumb’s order book sharing. Regulators are reportedly considering whether to handle this matter separately from expected February deliberations on sanctions under the Specific Financial Information Act (commonly referred to as the “Special Act on Reporting”) or to merge both issues into a single review.
Bithumb had shared order books for approximately two months starting in late September 2025 with Stellar Exchange, a subsidiary of BingX. The company promoted the model as a way to expand liquidity and improve user convenience, but regulators intervened early, conducting on-site inspections and signaling concerns.
The FIU regards the order book sharing between Bithumb and Stellar Exchange as a change that should have been reported under the Special Act on Reporting. Failure to notify the FIU of such changes may trigger penalties, providing regulators with a legal basis to consider additional sanctions against Bithumb.
Regulators’ stance on cutting off contact with unregistered foreign VASPs is also being reinforced. On January 12, following the FIU’s designation of BingX as an unregistered operator, domestic exchanges including Upbit and Coinone announced they would fully restrict deposits and withdrawals involving BingX in accordance with regulatory guidance.
Alphabiz Reporter Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
