Authorities Strengthen Customer Verification for Non-Profit Corporations and Exchanges to Prevent Money Laundering

Starting June 1st (local time), as the sale of virtual assets (cryptocurrency) by non-profit corporations and virtual asset exchanges is permitted, customer verification procedures will be strengthened to prevent money laundering.

On the 20th (local time), the Financial Services Commission announced in a press release, "From June, the sale by non-profit corporations and virtual asset exchanges will be allowed. To reduce the risk of money laundering, virtual asset exchanges and banks issuing real-name accounts plan to strengthen customer verification for them."

According to this guideline, virtual asset exchanges and banks issuing real-name accounts plan to specifically verify and validate the purpose of transactions and the source of funds. Additionally, virtual asset exchanges will verify the source of funds and the purpose of transactions for virtual asset deposit transactions, and banks will verify the source of funds and the purpose of transactions for withdrawals from real-name accounts. Continuous money laundering monitoring for virtual asset exchanges and non-profit corporation customers will also be conducted.

Customer verification will also be strengthened. The Financial Services Commission stated, "Exchanges and banks issuing real-name accounts will verify customer verification items for non-profit corporations and exchange customers within a one-year range periodically," and "If evaluated as high-risk for money laundering, the verification and validation cycle will be shortened."

Furthermore, "The government aims to announce a plan for issuing real-name accounts for listed companies and professional investors within the second half of the year," and "will also prepare measures to prevent money laundering for this."

Meanwhile, the Korea Federation of Banks and the Digital Asset Exchange Joint Consultative Body (DAXA) plan to prepare guidelines reflecting the above content by May and distribute them to virtual asset exchanges and banks issuing real-name accounts.