South Korea is seeing a sharp increase in illegal virtual asset remittances, including cases of money laundering and foreign exchange manipulation. The number of such incidents is rising as the country’s crypto investor population has grown to more than 10 million.

According to data from the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), obtained by Rep. Jin Seong-jun of the Democratic Party of Korea, virtual asset operators filed 36,684 suspicious transaction reports (STRs) between January and August 2025. This figure already exceeds the combined total of 35,734 STRs filed over the previous two years.

Under the Specific Financial Information Act, domestic virtual asset operators are required to report any transactions suspected of money laundering to the FIU. This includes currency exchange schemes where criminal funds are converted into virtual assets at overseas exchanges—bypassing traditional foreign exchange banks—and then transferred to domestic platforms for cashing out.

The annual STR filings have grown exponentially, jumping from 199 cases in 2021 to 17,977 cases in the year that followed. While STRs filings dropped to 16,076 in 2023, the number grew to just under 20,000 in 2024 before skyrocketing to 36,684 in the first eight months of 2025.

Data from the Korea Customs Service reportedly shows that the total value of virtual asset-related crimes forwarded to prosecutors between 2021 and August 2025 reached approximately $7.1 billion. Of this, money laundering accounted for $6.4 billion, representing 90.2% of the total. One recent case highlights the growing misuse of stablecoins. In May, authorities apprehended a money changer who illegally transferred around roughly $42.4 million received from a Russian importer into tether ( USDT).

“As stablecoins become more widely used for payments and settlements in the real economy, the risk of them being exploited for foreign exchange crimes like money laundering is increasing,” Rep. Jin warned. He urged agencies such as the FIU and Korea Customs Service to implement robust countermeasures, including enhanced tracking of criminal funds and blocking disguised remittance channels.

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