Hey cryptonites, South Korea wants to know exactly who you are, and…make you pay a 24.2% tax on digital currencies. In addition, beginning January 30th, minors under 19 and foreigners without a local bank account will be banned from trading digital currencies, according to South Korea’s Financial Services Commission Vice Chair Kim Yong-beom.
“We expect that cryptocurrency exchanges that are in danger of being exploited for money laundering will be thrown out of the market,” Kim told reporters.
Reuters reports: “The new requirements are meant to ensure that a cryptocurrency investor’s money comes from a bank account owned by the same individual. Banks will be able to refuse to open accounts with cryptocurrency exchanges that do not disclose information about suspicious trading. They were told to closely monitor crypto trading that exceeds 10 million won ($9,338) a day or 20 million won ($18,676) per week and also accounts owned by corporations or groups and report any suspicious activity to the authorities.”
South Korea currently ranks as the third-largest market for bitcoin. Earlier this month, South Korean officials discussed banning bitcoin altogether.