News linked to both this project and an event.
According to Reuters, the Zimbabwean government announced that businesses engaged in buying, transferring, or custodial services for virtual assets must register annually with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and pay an annual fee of USD 500; operating without registration will constitute a violation of the law. This measure marks Zimbabwe’s first dedicated regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency industry, aiming to bring a market long operating in the informal sector under formal regulation.
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.
South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) plans to discontinue its push for mandatory Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) for large cross-border virtual asset transfers and peer-to-peer wallet transfers, while continuing to expand the scope of Travel Rule oversight to further strengthen digital asset transaction tracing.
FocusAI, the largest shareholder of the Busan Digital Asset Exchange, is moving forward with the acquisition of the South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Flybit. Both parties are in the final stages of discussions regarding details such as the share transfer from Flybit's largest shareholder and representative director, Kim Seok-jin.Flybit registered as a virtual asset service provider in 2021 but has since exited the Korean won market after failing to establish a real-name account partnership with a bank. Through this acquisition, FocusAI plans to build a composite digital asset platform that manages cryptocurrencies, real-world assets, and tokenized securities. The transaction is still subject to a review by the Financial Intelligence Unit regarding the change of major shareholder. (bizwatch)
Bitget has announced the completion of relevant compliance registration procedures in Mexico, including registration with the Mexican Tax Administration Service (SAT) and the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF). This progress reflects Bitget's emphasis on local regulatory requirements and lays a further compliance foundation for the platform's long-term and stable development in Mexico and the Latin American region.As the digital asset market in Latin America continues to develop, users, partners, and financial institutions are increasingly focusing on the platform's compliance capabilities and professional service standards. Bitget will continue to treat Mexico as one of its key markets for regional expansion, continuously enhancing its service capabilities while adhering to applicable local rules, and exploring potential collaborations with local banks and financial institutions.Gracy Chen, CEO of Bitget, stated that the regulatory environment in the crypto industry is continuously evolving, and the long-term development of the platform requires a thorough understanding of local regulations, market demands, and the operational mechanisms of the financial system. Bitget's advancement of relevant registrations in Mexico is part of its global compliance strategy and also reflects the platform's long-term commitment to providing users with more stable and reliable services.
According to The Block, the T3 Financial Crime Unit (T3 FCU), jointly established by Tether, TRON, and TRM Labs, announced that since its founding in 2024, it has frozen over $450 million worth of illicit crypto assets globally. In 2025, the unit’s interception of illicit proceeds increased by 43.9% year-on-year, covering 23 jurisdictions including the United States, Spain, and Germany, and has been recognized by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) as “a critical resource for global law enforcement agencies.” The T3 FCU has participated in investigations across multiple crime categories, including exchange hacks, North Korea–related activities, terrorist financing, and violent crimes, and assisted Brazil’s Federal Police in freezing over $5.989 billion in assets—including 4.3 million USDT.
according to a UK police announcement, former World Athletics Championships 4x100m relay gold medalist and British sprinter CJ Ujah, along with nine other individuals, has been charged with "conspiracy to defraud" in connection with a cryptocurrency fraud case.Police stated that the criminal gang posed as police and cryptocurrency company personnel to conduct phone scams against multiple victims, tricking them into disclosing critical wallet security information, including seed phrases. The perpetrators then transferred the victims' crypto assets, with one victim losing over £300,000. The case was cracked following a joint investigation by the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU) across Kent, Essex, and London. The ten suspects have appeared in court, with Ujah released on bail until a further hearing on May 28.Ujah, now 32, won a 4x100m relay gold medal for Team GB at the 2017 World Championships and also claimed the Diamond League title that same year. In 2022, he was suspended for 22 months due to a doping violation, which was later attributed to contamination from a supplement causing an adverse analytical finding. In addition to Ujah, another British sprinter, Brandon Mingeli, is also on the list of those arrested and is currently in custody pending trial. (The Guardian)
: South Korea's crypto industry has expressed strong concerns over proposed amendments to anti-money laundering (AML) regulations, arguing that the rules could impose excessive compliance burdens on Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs).According to Yonhap News Agency, the Digital Asset eXchange Alliance (DAXA), representing 27 VASPs including Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax, submitted comments opposing the classification of all overseas virtual asset transfers exceeding 10 million won (approximately $6,800) as suspicious transaction reports.DAXA warned that this rule could cause the number of suspicious transaction reports from South Korea's top five exchanges to skyrocket from approximately 63,000 last year to over 5.4 million—an increase of about 85 times—severely impacting the efficiency of actual compliance execution. Furthermore, the industry also opposes a new obligation requiring exchanges to verify the accuracy of customer information, arguing it exceeds the scope of current legal authorization.South Korea's Financial Services Commission (FSC) and Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) proposed the relevant amendments on March 30, which have now entered a public comment period, with final deliberation expected to be completed in July.Meanwhile, legal disputes between Korean exchanges and regulators over AML penalties continue. Multiple platforms are challenging previous business restrictions and fines through the courts, reflecting an escalating tension between regulatory tightening and the industry's execution capabilities. (Cointelegraph)
According to Yonhap News Agency, the Korea Digital Asset Exchange Alliance (DAXA) submitted its official comments on the draft Enforcement Decree of the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (“Special Financial Information Act”) to the National Participation Legislative Center of the Ministry of Government Legislation on April 29. The comments reflect the collective views of 27 Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), including the five major exchanges Upbit and Bithumb. DAXA raised objections to two core provisions in the draft revision: First, the proposal to categorize all virtual asset transactions exceeding KRW 10 million as suspicious transactions—mandating compulsory reporting to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). This change is projected to increase the annual number of suspicious transaction reports filed by the five major exchanges from 63,000 to 5.445 million, an 85-fold surge. Second, the draft introduces a new obligation to verify the accuracy of customer information, going beyond existing customer identification requirements—and exceeding the scope of authority granted under the higher-level law. Moreover, penalties for noncompliance are significantly harsher than those applied to other financial sectors. While DAXA supports the legislative intent behind the revision—to strengthen the anti-money laundering (AML) framework—it contends that certain provisions overstep the statutory delegation of authority and impose discriminatory treatment on the virtual asset industry. The draft revision’s public consultation period ends on May 11, with formal adoption expected in July. The relevant provisions will be implemented in phases between August 2026 and 2027.
According to Yonhap News, the Seoul Administrative Court’s Administrative Division No. 2 ruled on April 30 to accept Bithumb’s application to suspend enforcement of a partial business suspension order issued against it by South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). The effect of this partial suspension order will thus be stayed until the court issues its final judgment in this case. Previously, in March this year, the FIU imposed a severe penalty on Bithumb—six months of partial business suspension and a fine of KRW 36.8 billion—citing 6.65 million violations by Bithumb of obligations stipulated under South Korea’s Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (“Special Financial Information Act”). The suspended operations specifically involve external virtual asset transfers (i.e., deposits and withdrawals) for new customers. This marks the harshest penalty ever levied against a Korean won-based cryptocurrency exchange operating in South Korea. The penalty was originally scheduled to take effect on March 27. However, Bithumb filed an administrative lawsuit on March 23 and simultaneously applied for a stay of enforcement, thereby temporarily halting the penalty’s effect. The court’s formal acceptance of the application means that the sanctions will remain suspended until the final ruling is rendered in this case.
South Korean crypto exchange Coinone has filed a lawsuit against the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) regarding its penalties and has applied for a stay of execution with the Seoul Administrative Court, attempting to suspend the relevant measures before the sanctions take effect on April 29.The core of the sanctions is to restrict new users from depositing and withdrawing crypto assets to and from external exchanges. Previously, the FIU imposed a three-month partial business suspension and a fine of 5.2 billion Korean won on Coinone for violating the Specific Financial Information Act. (Naver)
Odaily News: The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), in collaboration with HM Revenue & Customs and the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit, recently conducted raids on eight locations across the UK suspected of engaging in illegal P2P cryptocurrency trading. Officials issued prohibition orders on-site, requiring the operators to cease activities immediately and gathered relevant evidence. The UK FCA pointed out that currently, no P2P cryptocurrency traders or platforms are registered with the regulator in the UK. Furthermore, in the recent multi-agency Operation Atlantic, law enforcement agencies froze $12 million in assets linked to cryptocurrency scams and traced over $45 million in stolen cryptocurrency. The UK FCA has now launched a consultation on its guidelines for the cryptocurrency regulatory framework set to take effect in 2027.
According to DigitalAsset, a South Korean court ruled in favor of Dunamu—the operator of Upbit—in an administrative lawsuit it filed against the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), overturning the FIU’s administrative penalty ordering a three-month partial suspension of Dunamu’s operations. The court found that, in the absence of specific implementation guidelines from regulatory authorities, Dunamu had taken certain measures—including requesting written commitments from customers and conducting internal monitoring. Although the court acknowledged that whether these measures were sufficient to prevent transactions with unregistered operators remained debatable, it held that Dunamu had fulfilled its reasonable obligations given the lack of clear regulatory guidance. Previously, the FIU had imposed the three-month partial business suspension on Upbit for inadequacies in its controls over transactions with unregistered operators.