The Financial Intelligence Unit, an anti-money laundering unit under the Financial Services Commission, has approved Coinone’s request to register its virtual asset business, but is awaiting a decision regarding Bithumb.

Market insiders have suggested the delay may have something to do with a scandal involving Lee Jung-hoon, Bithumb’s largest shareholder. Lee is currently on trial for fraudulently obtaining 160 billion won ($ 135 million) from BK Group, a plastic surgery hospital.

According to Bithumb, he plans to comply with any request from the FIU by submitting additional documents to speed up the registration process.

Coinone, meanwhile, will take the next step to comply with the regulations imposed by law.

“We will launch the KYC (Know Your Customer) process to identify our customers and strengthen anti-money laundering measures by implementing a ‘travel rule’ system through CODE,” said a Coinone official. .

CODE is a joint venture launched by Bithumb, Coinone and Korbit that is designed to allow virtual asset service providers to identify their users and share information between them.

Until Friday, Coinone and Bithumb had been waiting for approval for more than two months. The country’s two other crypto giants, Upbit and Korbit, got the green light in less than a month.

Of the 42 crypto exchanges that applied to register a business, only three passed the hurdles. The ratings of the other 39 are still pending.

The FIU has previously announced that it will notify crypto exchanges by the end of this year if they can legitimately operate in the country.

By Byun Hye-jin ([email protected])