The Korea Financial Intelligence Unit recently conducted a comprehensive anti-money laundering inspection of the virtual asset exchange Korbit, and the results are concerning. The exchange was found to have violated the "Specific Financial Information Act," with issues arising in several key compliance areas.

Specifically, Korbit has deficiencies in customer due diligence obligations, failing to fully verify the identities of trading parties. At the same time, the enforcement of trading restrictions was also inadequate, indicating vulnerabilities in risk transaction identification and blocking. More seriously, the exchange was found to be engaged in transactions with unreported overseas virtual asset service providers, directly violating regulatory bans.

In addition, with the rise of innovative businesses such as NFTs, Korbit's risk management in new business areas also shows gaps—failing to conduct necessary money laundering risk assessments for these emerging products, which is a clear shortcoming under the current regulatory environment.

Based on these violations, the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit issued an institutional warning to Korbit and imposed a fine of 2.73 billion KRW. This penalty sends a clear signal: virtual asset exchanges must invest real resources in anti-money laundering compliance, from customer verification to transaction monitoring and new business assessments—no aspect can be neglected. For the industry, this is also a profound warning—strict regulatory standards will not be relaxed but will become increasingly detailed.