South Korean authorities under fire over $43B Bithumb Bitcoin error

Lawmakers criticize South Korea’s Financial Services Commission after Bithumb mistakenly credited 620,000 BTC and the probe faces delays.

South Korean lawmakers are stepping up pressure on financial regulators after crypto exchange Bithumb mistakenly credited customers with Bitcoin it did not hold, an error that briefly sparked a rush to sell and renewed questions about oversight of the country’s fast-growing digital-asset market.

Lawmakers said the Financial Services Commission (FSC) failed to detect critical flaws in Bithumb’s internal systems despite at least three inspections since 2022, The Korea Times reported Thursday.

Representative Kang Min-guk of the main opposition People Power Party said the incident is more than a technical mishap, claiming structural weaknesses in the crypto market, including gaps in regulation and oversight.

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