BY DAYO ADESULU
South Korean Exchanges have deleted some digital currency from their trading list suspected to be risky to the investors.
According to the Crypto trading platforms in South Korea, the decision to delist those cryptocurrencies was to comply with stricter rules for the industry lay down by the South Korean government.
Consequently, the trading of some high-risk coins has been either halted or completely suspended on several Korean exchanges this week.
The exchanges said while trying to meet Seoul’s tougher new rules for the cryptocurrency sector, they are now purging their trading lists of high-risk assets.
A report by Arirang, states that a number of crypto trading platforms have temporarily halted or ended the exchange of some digital coins while warning customers to be cautious of other currencies.
Bitcoin.com reports that out of 20 exchanges that have already obtained Information Security Management System (ISMS) certification, eleven have made such changes.
Among them are some of Korea’s leading crypto exchange providers, with observes reading the move as an attempt to meet new requirements for government approval.
Upbit exchange has so far decided to delist five digital currencies – paycoin, maro, observer, solve.care, and quiztok starting from Friday.
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Huobi Korea exchange discontinued trading of the Huobi token, while Coinbit exchange has ended the trading of eight cryptocurrencies while putting another 28 coins on a warning list issued for its users.
South Korean crypto exchanges are now required to register with the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). In May, the government tasked the agency with the oversight of the country’s expanding digital asset market. To operate legally, the trading platforms need to open real-name bank accounts for their customers in partnership with local banks.
However, Korean financial institutions have been reluctant to get involved in the crypto space. It has been reported recently that only four crypto exchanges – Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit – are currently working with commercial banks to implement the real-name account system.
Major banking groups such as Hana have decided not to issue real-name accounts for crypto trading. K Bank, which opens accounts for crypto traders on Upbit, has expressed doubts about whether it should continue to do that. Its management is weighing up the proceeds from trading fees against risks such as hacking threats and illicit funds.
