The South Korean government recently gave crypto exchanges an ultimatum of until September 24 to register their businesses, and failing to do so would force the regulators to close down their operations.
Right after releasing this statement, various crypto exchanges have expressed their concerns that this deadline is too tight for them.
Ergo, the country’s blockchain organization has urged the government to extend the deadline by six months, but it appears that the government isn’t open with bargaining.
One of the reasons why a lot of crypto exchanges haven’t registered their businesses yet is because existing laws make it hard for them to acquire the necessary requirements, especially the Information Security Management System (ISMS) certification.
Loose policies
But the government’s tightened policy is backed by highly important reasons. First, it turns out that South Korea’s 33 major crypto exchanges don’t have any bank accounts in place.
Second, they don’t have any anti-money laundering protocols in place, which makes their businesses an ideal place for criminals to conduct their illegal transactions.
But even with the regulators’ cool stance on extending the deadline, crypto exchanges have found some allies in the government.
Representatives Cho Myeong-hee and Chang-Hyun Yoon of the People Power Party have already proposed bills that would extend the government’s deadline for the crypto exchanges.
Closures imminent
A lot of crypto exchanges are saying that it is physically impossible to issue a real-name account until September 24. But their other peers are also aware that if crypto exchanges cannot show willingness and flexibility in following the government’s orders, it may certainly lead to their operations’ closure.
While the deadline is backed by good reasons, some government departments have varying opinions.
“It is difficult to overlook the concern that consumer damage will increase if businesses that do not meet the legal requirements extend their business,” the Financial Policy Division at the Office of Government Policy Coordination, said.
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