Quick Breakdown
- •$102M laundered via crypto: South Korean authorities dismantled a multi-year laundering scheme involving nearly 150 billion won.
- •Sophisticated evasion tactics: Funds were masked as trade, education, and medical expenses and routed through multiple countries.
- •Stronger oversight underway: Seoul is tightening crypto transfer rules amid a surge in suspicious transaction reports in 2025.
South Korea’s Customs Service has broken up a large-scale crypto money laundering operation involving nearly 150 billion won ($101.7 million), underscoring the country’s intensifying crackdown on illicit digital asset flows.
SOUTH KOREA BUSTS $102M CRYPTO RING!
South Korean authorities have caught a major international money exchange ring that laundered approximately $101.7 Million through cryptocurrency.
√ Crime: Laundering through illegal money exchange (known as Hwan-chigi).
√ Action: 4… pic.twitter.com/I3MB11CObx
— Crypto Aman (@cryptoamanclub) January 19, 2026
According to local media outlet Yonhap, authorities arrested three Chinese nationals for violating South Korea’s Foreign Exchange Transactions Act. Investigators say the group laundered funds through cryptocurrency channels over almost four years, from September 2021 to June 2025, by exploiting both domestic and overseas crypto accounts.
The suspects allegedly collected customer deposits through Chinese payment platforms WeChat Pay and Alipay before converting the funds into digital assets. These cryptocurrencies were then funnelled into South Korean wallets and exchanged for Korean won, helping the group evade financial surveillance systems.
Criminals Used Fake Trade and Education Payments to Move Funds
The Korea Customs Service said the ring disguised illicit transfers as legitimate cross-border expenses, including trade settlement fees, duty-free purchases, overseas tuition payments, and even cosmetic surgery costs for foreign nationals.
To further avoid detection, the group reportedly sourced crypto from multiple jurisdictions, making it harder for regulators to trace transaction origins. Authorities noted that some transfers lacked clear economic purposes, raising red flags during customs and financial reviews.
South Korea Tightens Crypto Controls Amid Rising STRs
The case comes as Seoul accelerates efforts to balance crypto adoption with stronger oversight. While South Korea has pushed aggressively in 2025 to position itself as a global digital asset hub, regulators are also closing gaps that could enable financial crime.
The government recently announced stricter monitoring of crypto transfers under 1 million won, shutting down a loophole that allowed smaller transactions to bypass identity verification requirements.
Lawmakers say the tougher stance is already producing results. In September alone, South Korea flagged 36,684 suspicious crypto transactions in 2025, more than the combined total from the previous two years. Data from Representative Jin Sung-joon and the Korea Customs Service show that local virtual asset service providers filed all of those suspicious transaction reports between January and August.