South Korean police have reportedly seized local crypto exchange Coinbit for allegedly inflating trading volumes. According to the Seoul Shinmun, report, crypto exchange Coinbit’s offices have been raided for the alleged fraud by authorities. The crypto exchange is being accused of using multiple “ghost accounts” to inflate trading volumes. About 99% of Coinbit’s trading volume is said to have been manipulated in recent months, which resulted in “unfair profits” of at least 100 billion won ( $84 million) for the crypto exchange.
The crypto exchange halts operations as authorities investigate.
The crypto exchange Coinbit has now reportedly halted operations amid an ongoing investigation by the police. In light of the Coinbit situation, Doo Wan Nam, MakerDAO’s business development associate in the Asia-Pacific region, suggested users to trade cryptocurrencies via decentralized exchanges. Crypto exchanges in South Kora are set to face stricter regulations from next year as the country recently amended a law that will officially bring virtual currencies under its legal system. South Korea is among the few countries that have passed laws to regulate the crypto industry.
TL;DR Use #DEX
— Doo (@DooWanNam) August 26, 2020
Crypto scams continue to surge amid the pandemic.
Scams related to cryptocurrency have increased across countries amid the ongoing global pandemic. Earlier this year, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a warning saying scammers might be looking to unleash a surge in crypto-related scams. Several countries also reported a surge in crypto scams that included a spike in ransomware attacks, Ponzi schemes, and other different types of scams involving cryptocurrencies.
Earlier researchers in Russia identified an exponential surge in the cryptocurrency-related scams that occurred in the first half of 2020. The cybersecurity firm identified 23,000 websites involved with crypto scams that are still active and are targeting new victims in Russia. Crypto scams continue to rise worldwide amid the ongoing global pandemic.
