South Korea's Financial Services Commission is considering suspending account payments for virtual assets suspected of market manipulation.

South Korean financial authorities are studying the introduction of a "payment suspension" system in virtual asset price manipulation cases to prevent suspects from transferring or hiding illegal proceeds during the investigation phase.

The report states that the South Korean Financial Services Commission discussed related cases at a regular meeting last November and proposed referencing the approach used in the capital market for stock price manipulation by taking early freezing measures on accounts suspected of manipulating virtual asset prices, restricting withdrawals, transfers, and payments to prevent fund outflows. The report points out that under the current system, the confiscation or recovery of illegal proceeds from virtual assets usually requires investigation by the prosecution and obtaining a court order before implementation, which carries the risk of assets being transferred during this period. The Financial Services Commission internally believes that it is possible to consider introducing an account payment suspension mechanism similar to that in the capital market law in the planned "second phase of virtual asset legislation" to more effectively prevent unrealized gains from being disposed of prematurely. Officials from the financial authorities stated that since virtual assets are easier to hide once transferred to personal wallets, such a system may help strengthen supervision and asset preservation at an early stage.