South Korea Enforces Strict Regulations on Altcoins and Crypto Exchanges

Summary:

The South Korean government is intensifying its regulation of altcoins by mandating that crypto exchanges conduct a comprehensive review of 600 online assets. Failure to comply will result in deregistration. Exchanges will also need to perform quarterly maintenance appraisals evaluating trust factors and user safeguard mechanisms. Assets failing to meet required standards will receive a cautionary trade note, leading to possible deregistration. This initiative aims to ensure that online assets are properly registered with the 29 crypto exchanges adhering to the Virtual Asset User Protection Act, which becomes law on July 19, 2024. The law will establish criteria for crypto exchanges to operate in South Korea, with initial assessments focusing on the viability of online assets for trading and ongoing quarterly reviews. Special reviews will be conducted for decentralized assets like bitcoin and those issued by DAOs.