Crypto.com Picks Patrick Yoon as New General Manager, South Korea

Crypto.com Appoints Patrick Yoon as General Manager of South Korea Operations

Crypto.com announced a new appointment to its South Korean branch in a blog post on September 7. The company said that it was hiring former country manager at Visa Korea, Patrick Yoon, as its new general manager.

Patrick’s appointment comes at a crucial time as regulators in South Korea are hardening their stance against cryptocurrencies. Recently, several exchanges have been forced to cease their operations for failing to comply with Financial Intelligence Unit’s new anti-money laundering laws. Just last month, Japanese tech giant LINE’s crypto exchange Bitfront announced that it would shut down all its activities by Sept. 14.

However, Patrick isn’t discouraged by the ongoing developments and has expressed an intention to work with regulators to better understand the industry. 

Commenting on the new hiring, Crypto.com CEO and co-founder Kris Marszalek highlighted that Patrick’s experience was an ideal fit for the company. He noted:

South Korean Regulators Want Exchanges to Register by Sept. 24

The fate of many digital asset exchanges in South Korea is currently hanging in the balance as the last day for registering with regulators draws near. The Financial Transaction Reports Act requires both domestic and foreign exchanges to complete registration by Sept 24.

However, getting approval has been a tough road for many companies, who have to get certified by the Information Security Management System, ensure their customers have real bank accounts, and verify that their CEO and board members have not been involved in criminal activities.

As of now, South Korea does not recognize cryptocurrencies as legal assets, although it’s contemplating a tax on crypto revenue starting next year.