The exchange was also accused of completing customer verification records even when key information was missing — and of allowing transactions to continue for customers whose identity checks had never been finished.
South Korea’s FIU fined Coinone $4M and hit the exchange with a three-month partial suspension over AML violations.
New customers are blocked from crypto deposits and withdrawals starting April 29.
The FIU fined Coinone 5.2 billion won, equal to about $3.5 million. A three-month partial business suspension was also imposed, blocking new customers from depositing or withdrawing funds for the duration of the ban.
Second Major Exchange Hit In A MonthThis is not the first time South Korean authorities have gone after a major exchange in recent weeks. In March, Bithumb — the country’s second-largest crypto platform by trading volume — was fined $24 million and handed a six-month partial suspension over similar anti-money laundering failures.
That action came after Bithumb made headlines for a costly clerical error: the exchange accidentally sent customers 620,000 Bitcoin, valued at roughly $42 billion at the time, instead of 620,000 Korean won.
The blunder prompted the Bank of Korea to call on lawmakers to impose tighter controls on exchanges, including trading curbs that could kick in during unusual market activity or sharp price swings.
The exchange, ranked third in South Korea by size, now joins Bithumb as targets of what appears to be a widening regulatory push against crypto platforms in the country.
Officials said Monday that lawmakers should consider trading halt mechanisms tied to abnormal activity — a proposal that signals authorities are looking at structural fixes, not just fines.
How Coinone responds to the FIU’s action within its 10-day window will likely shape how the final penalties are written.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
