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South Korean listed company ITCEN Global raises KRW 40 billion to expand its Web3 business
According to Chosun, Korean-listed IT service provider ITCEN Global announced raising KRW 40 billion (approximately USD 3 million) through the issuance of convertible bonds. The funding round was fully subscribed by ITC Holdings, which is wholly owned by the KCGI Innovation Growth ESG Fund. The proceeds will be used to expand new businesses, including Web3 and security token offerings (STOs). The company stated that if South Korea’s digital asset regulatory framework is finalized in the second half of the year, these initiatives are expected to accelerate.
South Korea’s delayed cryptocurrency legislation hampers NAVER’s merger process; DS Securities lowers target price to KRW 300,000
According to The Asia Business Daily, DS Investment & Securities issued a research report lowering NAVER’s target price from its previous level to 300,000 KRW, while maintaining a “Buy” rating. Analyst Choi Seung-ho noted that the downward revision is primarily driven by two factors: first, NAVER’s operating profit margin for this year is projected to decline from 18.3% to 17.6%, due to rising advertising and e-commerce marketing expenses as well as depreciation costs; second, delayed legislative progress on cryptocurrency-related regulations is directly affecting the proposed merger between NAVER Financial and Dunamu, raising the possibility of further postponement beyond the originally scheduled completion in September. Previously, DS Securities had assigned a valuation of 15 trillion KRW to NAVER’s cryptocurrency business within its Sum-of-the-Parts (SOTP) valuation; this portion has now been removed from the updated report. Choi Seung-ho added that the e-commerce business remains NAVER’s core growth engine going forward, with annual e-commerce sales expected to reach approximately 2.7 trillion KRW.
South Korean police launch first investigation into Polymarket users for suspected illegal gambling
According to The Korea Business, South Korean police are investigating domestic users of Polymarket—the world’s largest prediction market platform—for alleged violations of Article 246 of the Criminal Act (gambling offenses), which carries a maximum fine of KRW 10 million. This investigation—led by the Gangwon Provincial Police Agency upon delegation from the National Police Agency—is the first criminal probe targeting Polymarket users in South Korea, covering users nationwide. It is reported that South Korean users placed bets on the platform using USD-pegged stablecoins, with no restrictions imposed by the platform; for instance, the June 3 local elections alone attracted hundreds of billions of won in betting volume.
South Korean Incheon mayoral candidate accused of falsifying assets, suspected of failing to declare spouse’s cryptocurrency holdings
According to Yonhap News Agency, on June 1, the Incheon Metropolitan City Election Commission formally filed a complaint with the Incheon Police Agency against Yoo Jeong-bok, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party for Incheon mayor, citing violations of the Public Official Election Act. Yoo is accused of submitting false information in his candidate asset disclosure: his spouse’s actual assets amount to approximately 518.57 million KRW—significantly higher than the declared amount of 439.88 million KRW—and their combined household assets should total approximately 1.92297 billion KRW, not the declared 1.84472 billion KRW. Earlier media reports indicated that his spouse held 21,000 units of virtual assets and transferred them to overseas exchanges to evade local election asset disclosure obligations. The Incheon Police Agency’s Anti-Corruption Investigation Unit will merge this complaint with a related case previously filed by the Democratic Party of Korea for joint investigation.
OKX confirmed to invest $53 million to acquire a 20% stake in Coinone, a South Korean crypto exchange
OKX Ventures, the investment arm of OKX, announced it will acquire a 19.6% stake in Coinone, one of South Korea's five licensed digital asset trading platforms. Coinone has signed a strategic equity investment agreement with OKX Ventures, Korea Investment & Securities (KIS), as well as Com2uS and its affiliates.OKX Ventures and KIS will each invest 80 billion KRW ($53 million). Upon completion of the investment and receipt of regulatory approval, both companies will each hold a 19.6% stake in the platform. Together, they will become the third-largest shareholders of the South Korean exchange, trailing only Coinone CEO Cha Myung-hoon (27.8%) and Com2uS Holdings and its affiliates (25%).According to the announcement, the investment will be carried out through a combination of purchasing secondary market shares from Cha and Com2uS, as well as subscribing to newly issued shares. (The Block)
South Korea’s petition to abolish the 22% cryptocurrency tax surpasses the 50,000-signature threshold, sparking regulatory debate amid ongoing market contraction
According to Cointelegraph, a petition in South Korea calling for the abolition of the 22% tax on cryptocurrency investment gains has surpassed the 50,000-signature threshold, triggering the mandatory review mechanism of the National Assembly’s Committee on Strategy and Finance. The petition currently has over 52,000 signatures. This tax policy is scheduled to take effect in January 2027. Petitioners argue that taxing crypto assets is significantly heavier than taxation applied to other asset classes, which will increase investors’ burdens, restrict upward mobility—especially for younger demographics—and potentially lead to industry contraction and capital and talent flight. Meanwhile, South Korea’s cryptocurrency market continues to shrink: total crypto asset holdings have declined from approximately 121.8 trillion KRW (about $83.3 billion) in January 2025 to roughly 60.6 trillion KRW (about $41.4 billion) in February 2026. Daily trading volume across the country’s top five exchanges has also plummeted—from $11.6 billion in December 2024 to $3 billion.
South Korea’s seventh-largest pension relief company lost approximately $32.73 million investing in Ethereum leveraged ETFs.
According to Korea Economic Daily, Bumo Sarang, South Korea’s seventh-largest pension relief company, invested 59.5 billion KRW of its operating funds last year in Bitmine, an Ethereum-themed stock’s daily double-leveraged ETF, resulting in a loss of 49.3 billion KRW (approximately USD 32.73 million). A comprehensive review of the 2025 audit reports from 75 pension relief companies revealed that 42.7% of these firms hold total assets lower than the prepaid funds owed to their clients—meaning they would be unable to fully refund all clients if all terminated their contracts simultaneously.
South Korea Enacts Amendment to Strengthen Regulation of Cross-Border Transfers of Cryptographic Assets
According to The Block, South Korea’s National Assembly has passed an amendment to the Foreign Exchange Transaction Act, requiring enterprises engaged in cross-border inflows and outflows of crypto assets to register with the Minister of Economy and Finance to strengthen systematic oversight of cross-border crypto asset flows. The amendment introduces a new definition of “virtual asset transfer business,” covering activities involving the transfer of crypto assets between South Korea and overseas jurisdictions through buying, selling, or exchanging—such as those conducted by cryptocurrency exchanges and digital asset custodians. Separately, it is reported that South Korea’s Financial Services Commission plans to extend the Travel Rule to all crypto transactions; South Korea also intends to impose a 22% tax on crypto asset gains exceeding 2.5 million KRW starting January 2027.
South Korea Enacts Amendment to Strengthen Regulation of Cross-Border Transfers of Cryptographic Assets
According to The Block, South Korea’s National Assembly has passed an amendment to the Foreign Exchange Transaction Act, requiring enterprises engaged in cross-border inflows and outflows of crypto assets to register with the Minister of Economy and Finance to strengthen systematic oversight of cross-border crypto asset flows. The amendment introduces a new definition of “virtual asset transfer business,” covering activities involving the transfer of crypto assets between South Korea and overseas jurisdictions through buying, selling, or exchanging—such as those conducted by cryptocurrency exchanges and digital asset custodians. Separately, it is reported that South Korea’s Financial Services Commission plans to extend the Travel Rule to all crypto transactions; South Korea also intends to impose a 22% tax on crypto asset gains exceeding 2.5 million KRW starting January 2027.
A South Korean finance employee was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for embezzling 570 million KRW of company funds to invest in crypto assets.
According to South Korean media outlet Newsis, a man in his twenties, who worked as a company finance staff member in South Korea, was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment by the Busan District Court for embezzling corporate funds to invest in cryptocurrencies. The court determined that between 2021 and 2025, he transferred company funds into his personal account approximately 680 times, embezzling a total of roughly 570 million KRW, which he used for cryptocurrency trading, overseas travel, and daily expenses. He also forged certificates of corporate deposit trust balances to conceal his crimes.
South Korea’s delayed cryptocurrency legislation hampers NAVER’s merger process; DS Securities lowers target price to KRW 300,000
According to The Asia Business Daily, DS Investment & Securities issued a research report lowering NAVER’s target price from its previous level to 300,000 KRW, while maintaining a “Buy” rating. Analyst Choi Seung-ho noted that the downward revision is primarily driven by two factors: first, NAVER’s operating profit margin for this year is projected to decline from 18.3% to 17.6%, due to rising advertising and e-commerce marketing expenses as well as depreciation costs; second, delayed legislative progress on cryptocurrency-related regulations is directly affecting the proposed merger between NAVER Financial and Dunamu, raising the possibility of further postponement beyond the originally scheduled completion in September. Previously, DS Securities had assigned a valuation of 15 trillion KRW to NAVER’s cryptocurrency business within its Sum-of-the-Parts (SOTP) valuation; this portion has now been removed from the updated report. Choi Seung-ho added that the e-commerce business remains NAVER’s core growth engine going forward, with annual e-commerce sales expected to reach approximately 2.7 trillion KRW.
Bithumb to List SPX (SPX6900)/KRW Trading Pair
According to the official announcement, Bithumb will launch the SPX (SPX6900)/KRW trading pair.
Upbit to List SPX Pairs Against KRW, BTC, and USDT
According to the official announcement, Upbit will launch SPX trading pairs against KRW, BTC, and USDT.
Bithumb to Launch SPACE/KRW Trading Pair
According to the official announcement, Bithumb will list the SPACE/KRW trading pair.
Bithumb to Launch CTR/KRW Trading Pair
According to the official announcement, Bithumb will list the CTR/KRW trading pair.
Upbit to List BABY/KRW Trading Pair
According to the official announcement, South Korean crypto exchange Upbit will list the BABY token on its KRW market, with trading commencing at 20:00 local time on June 5.
Bithumb to List SLX/KRW Trading Pair
According to the official announcement, Bithumb will list the SLX/KRW trading pair.
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Bithumb to List SPX (SPX6900)/KRW Trading Pair
According to the official announcement, Bithumb will launch the SPX (SPX6900)/KRW trading pair.
Upbit to List SPX Pairs Against KRW, BTC, and USDT
According to the official announcement, Upbit will launch SPX trading pairs against KRW, BTC, and USDT.
Bithumb to Launch SPACE/KRW Trading Pair
According to the official announcement, Bithumb will list the SPACE/KRW trading pair.
A South Korean currency exchanger involved in the Huione Group was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment for failing to report virtual asset transactions.
According to Digital Asset, a Korean currency exchange dealer in his 40s, identified as “A,” was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment and ordered to forfeit 133 million KRW by the Seoul Central District Court for unreported virtual asset transactions linked to Huiwang Group—a Cambodian money laundering organization. The court ruled that between 2022 and 2024, A conducted approximately 15.5 billion KRW worth of digital asset transactions across 194 instances without reporting them to financial authorities; and between 2021 and 2023, he engaged in approximately 2.9 billion KRW worth of unregistered foreign exchange activities—including remittances to China—across 135 instances. This marks the first time a South Korean court has issued a guilty verdict related to digital asset money laundering allegations involving Huiwang Group.
Bithumb to Launch CTR/KRW Trading Pair
According to the official announcement, Bithumb will list the CTR/KRW trading pair.
South Korea’s Top 5 Cryptocurrency Exchanges Have Experienced 57 Hacking and System Incidents Over the Past Six Years, with Total Compensation Amounting to Approximately $5.1 Million
South Korea’s top five cryptocurrency exchanges experienced a total of 57 hacking incidents and system failures between 2020 and April 2026, resulting in cumulative compensation of approximately 7 billion KRW (about USD 5.1 million).