"FSS, Korea Customs Service and card issuers build a joint framework… move to block virtual-asset hawala-style transfers"

Financial and customs authorities, together with the card industry, are reportedly setting up a joint response framework to prevent transnational criminal funds from being siphoned off overseas. The plan is to establish a system to closely track illicit fund movements that use overseas card spending and virtual assets (cryptocurrencies).

According to the industry on the 17th, the Financial Supervisory Service and the Korea Customs Service signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Korea Credit Finance Association and nine domestic card issuers for a "joint response to block transnational criminal funds." The MOU aims to block criminal money flows such as voice phishing and virtual-asset hawala-style transfers by linking and analyzing overseas credit and debit card transaction records with entry and exit (immigration) information.

The Korea Credit Finance Association is also expected to serve as a cooperation hub mediating information sharing between the parties and to run a regular working-level consultative body.

Authorities expect the cooperative framework to simultaneously block fund outflows using overseas card cash withdrawals and hawala-style transfer routes using virtual assets.