7.2 Trillion Won in Illegal Foreign Exchange Transactions Detected in H1

Illegal foreign exchange transactions totaling over 7 trillion won, involving the unauthorized outflow of foreign currency or failure to repatriate funds required to be brought back into the country, were caught during the first half of this year.

The Korea Customs Service announced on July 27 that it detected 792 cases of illegal foreign exchange transactions worth a total of 7.2 trillion won during the first half of the year.

This is the result of intensive crackdowns on illegal foreign exchange transactions that negatively impact foreign currency liquidity amid sustained high exchange rates, alongside foreign exchange inspections conducted on 50 companies suspected of illicit forex activities.

The inspections targeted not only direct illegal outflows of foreign currency, but also hawala transactions and illicit trade settlements using virtual assets that weaken foreign currency inflows and obstruct monitoring by foreign exchange authorities.

The inspections uncovered cases of asset flight, where individuals invested in overseas real estate using funds borrowed from domestic credit institutions, and then concealed the profits abroad instead of repatriating them to South Korea in accordance with relevant laws at the time.

There were also instances where a small-scale overseas remittance provider issued multiple virtual accounts to remit a total of approximately 2.5 trillion won abroad, exceeding the annual total remittance limit.

Investigations confirmed that these funds included proceeds from crimes such as voice phishing and gambling.

Other confirmed cases included receiving export proceeds in virtual assets rather than legal payment methods—failing to bring about 90 billion won worth of dollars into the country—as well as failing to repatriate overseas accounts receivable and instead investing them abroad without reporting, thereby leaking foreign currency.

Lee Jong-wook, Commissioner of the Korea Customs Service, stated, "As the prolonged high exchange rate is a core risk exacerbating difficulties for our economy, we will mobilize all of the Korea Customs Service's foreign exchange enforcement capabilities to thoroughly crack down on illegal foreign currency outflows."
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.