South Korea Sets Crypto Withdrawal Delays, Proposes Basic Act

South Korean financial regulators have introduced unified withdrawal delay rules for cryptocurrency exchanges, aiming to curb voice phishing scams and illicit fund movements, while lawmakers advance a comprehensive Digital Asset Basic Act to strengthen oversight of digital assets, including stablecoins and insider trading.

The Financial Services Commission (FSC) and Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), in coordination with the Digital Asset Exchange Association (DAXA), announced the standardized withdrawal system on April 8. It mandates a 24- to 72-hour cooling-off period for new deposits before users can withdraw funds, closing loopholes that previously allowed fraudsters to exploit varying exchange policies. Between June and September 2025, 59 percent of fraudulent accounts—1,490 out of 2,526—bypassed delays through lenient exemptions, leading to losses of 170.5 billion won, or 75.5 percent of total voice phishing damages in crypto during that period. Criminals often created accounts, conducted minimal trades to qualify for exceptions, and moved stolen funds within minutes, evading bank freezes.

Under the new rules, exemptions require rigorous evaluation based on transaction...