- South Korea has approved blocking access to 27 websites run by unregistered crypto platforms, including KuCoin, MEXC, Phemex and Bitrue.
- The decision followed Korea Media and Communications Standards Commission reviews on Oct. 6 and 7, and was announced by the FIU on Tuesday.
- The measures extend earlier app-store restrictions and apply to platforms not registered under the country’s anti-money laundering law.
- The FIU has said that users may face withdrawal difficulties and plans to provide guidance and support through DAXA.
South Korean authorities have cleared measures to cut off domestic access to 27 websites run by unregistered crypto exchanges and other virtual asset service providers. The list includes KuCoin, MEXC, Phemex and Bitrue. The country’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), the government body that oversees anti-money laundering rules for financial transactions, announced the decision on Tuesday. It also acknowledged that users of the affected platforms may struggle to withdraw their funds.
Review Process Behind The Decision
The FIU said the move came after reviews by the Korea Media and Communications Standards Commission on Oct. 6 and 7. Besides the four platforms above, the list covers CoinW, BTCC, BitMart, BingX, DigiFinex and several others.
Source: x.com
The blocks target platforms that have not registered under the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information, South Korea’s anti-money laundering law.
How The Blocks Will Work
Enforcement depends on where a site is hosted. Services based inside South Korea will be terminated, while sites run from overseas will be blocked from domestic access.
South Korea Orders Website Blocks on 27 Unregistered Overseas Crypto Exchanges, Including KuCoin, MEXC and BingX
South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) announced that the country’s communications review authority has ordered domestic access restrictions on 27 unregistered overseas cryptocurrency exchange websites, including KuCoin, MEXC, Phemex, XT com, Bitrue, CoinW, Poloniex, BTCC, BingX and BitMart, according to Etoday.
The decision, made following reviews on October 6–7, expands existing restrictions on app downloads and updates to exchange websites. The FIU has referred 44 unregistered virtual asset service providers to investigative authorities and plans to seek additional blocks on alternative domains used to circumvent the restrictions. Authorities said they would also provide withdrawal guidance to affected users through DAXA.
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 13, 2026
In its statement, the FIU said that, going by a translation, the rules against illegal virtual asset operators would now reach websites, after already covering apps on Apple and Google platforms.
Follow-up To Earlier App Restrictions
The step builds on action against mobile apps. The earlier reporting from April 2025 noted that South Korea blocked downloads and updates for 14 unregistered exchange apps on Apple’s App Store. That came after similar limits on 17 apps on Google Play.
How Overseas Platforms Are Judged
To decide whether a foreign operator is aiming at Korean customers, the FIU looks at three things: whether the platform offers Korean-language services, whether it markets to South Korean users, and whether it supports transactions in Korean won.
Withdrawal Support For Affected Users
The FIU acknowledged that the website blocks could make withdrawals harder for existing customers. It plans to offer withdrawal guidance and support through the Digital Asset eXchange Alliance (DAXA), an industry group of South Korean exchanges, with help from the platform operators.
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