Exchanges
Neutral
South Korea to let crypto exchanges freeze withdrawals on hacking suspicion
Image: CointelegraphSouth Korea's Financial Services Commission plans to issue a no‑action letter that lets crypto exchanges suspend deposits and withdrawals when hacking is suspected. The regulator aims to shift the trigger from a confirmed breach to a suspicion, giving platforms minutes to act. Recent security incidents include GOPAX halting trading after a threat and Prabang losing about $70,000 from its hot wallet.
Key points
- The Financial Services Commission will issue a no‑action letter allowing exchanges to freeze deposits and withdrawals on suspected hacking.
- The rule changes the trigger from a confirmed breach to a suspicion, giving platforms minutes to respond.
- GOPAX suspended trading, deposits and withdrawals after receiving a hacking threat, though no breach was confirmed.
- Prabang reported a loss of about $70,000 from its hot wallet following abnormal withdrawals.
Why it matters
The change could help exchanges act faster to protect assets during cyber threats, but it also introduces the possibility of funds being locked before a breach is verified.
What's unclear
The exact definition of "suspected hacking" and how long a freeze may last are not detailed in the regulator's announcement.
Sources · 3 publishers
Crypto Briefing
Tier 2
South Korea lets crypto exchanges freeze withdrawals on suspicion of hacking
Crypto.news
Tier 2
South Korea to allow crypto exchanges to block withdrawals if hacks are suspected
Coverage timeline
- First reported by Cointelegraph
- Also reported by Crypto Briefing
- CryptoVideos brief published
- 1 more publisher added to sources
How this page is checked. AI drafted this brief from selected independent reports. Automated checks compare numbers, source coverage and topic terms, but may miss errors. Publication and evidence refreshes run automatically. Read the linked reports for context. Report an error
