Google Play Blocks Unregistered Foreign VASP Apps in South Korea

According to a post by Chinese cryptocurrency journalist Wu Blockchain, Google Play has blocked access to unregistered foreign Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) apps such as KuCoin and MEXC in South Korea.

Since March 25, Google has blocked 17 exchanges that are not registered in Korea, following a request from the South Korean government.

The South Korean regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), stated that the blocked exchanges include KuCoin and MEXC and emphasized that these applications cannot be installed, nor can existing users update them.

The FSC noted that these cryptocurrency exchanges were operating without proper registration while aiming at Korean users.

> “It is expected that the domestic access blocking application of unreported businesses to Google applications will make a significant contribution to preventing money laundering through virtual assets and harm to domestic users in the future.”

The blocked exchanges, according to the FSC, are:
– KuCoin
– MEXC
– Phemex
– XT
– Biture
– CoinW
– CoinEX
– ZoomEX
– Poloniex
– BTCC
– DigiFinex
– Pionex
– Blofin
– Apex Pro
– CoinCatch
– WEEX
– BitMart

The FSC detailed the criteria for evaluating domestic business activities of exchanges, which include:
1. Whether there is a Korean-language website,
2. Whether there are marketing activities aimed at attracting Korean customers,
3. Whether payments in Korean won are supported.

As a result, users in South Korea are unable to install or update these affected apps via Google Play.

*This is not investment advice.