Bithumb Wins Victory in Seoul Court

Bithumb's Victory in the Seoul Administrative Court

In South Korea, the Seoul Administrative Court annulled the six-month partial business suspension of the Bithumb exchange, granting the exchange a significant legal victory. Judge Gong Hyeon-jin accepted the stay of execution request submitted on the same day. According to a report by Yonhap news agency citing legal sources, the decision was made quickly upon the exchange's request. Bithumb, one of the country's largest crypto platforms, breathed a sigh of relief with this development. As we have seen on our BTC detailed analysis pages in particular, Bithumb's high-volume BTC transactions will continue with this victory.

FIU's AML Violations and 36,8 Billion Won Fine

The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) had imposed this ban and a 36,8 billion won (approximately 24,6 million dollars) fine in March due to major violations of anti-money laundering (AML) rules. The FIU detected that the exchange committed approximately 6,65 million violations. Their distribution is as follows:

• 3,55 million from failing to perform mandatory customer identity verification (KYC),
• 3,04 million from failing to block transactions that should have been blocked.

The violations covered the Act on the Reporting and Use of Specified Financial Transaction Information. Bithumb, established in 2014 and one of the leading platforms by trading volume according to CoinGecko data, had appealed the fine.

Competitors' Fines and Personal Data Investigation

Meanwhile, Dunamu, the operator of Upbit, had received a 35,2 billion won fine. Competitors like Korbit were content with institutional warnings, while the Personal Information Protection Commission is now investigating Upbit, Bithumb, and others for sharing order books with overseas platforms. This investigation brings data security to the forefront in high-volume markets like BTC futures.

Impact on South Korea's Crypto Regulations

The decision stands out as part of the wave of strict oversight targeting the crypto sector in South Korea. While regulators discipline the market with similar sanctions in 2025, Bithumb's victory demonstrates the exchange's resilience. This development may add new momentum to the sector by signaling that compliance issues will be resolved in courts. Increasing investigations emphasize that platforms need to strengthen risk management and AML compliance. Bithumb's recovery could positively impact the volume of the local BTC spot market.