On Wednesday, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of South Korea approved the change of key executives at Gopax, marking a major milestone in Binance’s effort to re-enter the Korean market.
Binance had acquired a 67% majority stake in Gopax in February 2023, but the approval process for executive changes was delayed for over two years due to concerns over anti-money laundering (AML) and compliance risks.
Impact of U.S. Legal Battles and Binance’s Compliance Efforts
In 2023, Binance faced a series of lawsuits from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ), accusing the exchange of offering unregistered services and violating AML laws.
After agreeing to pay $4.3 billion in fines and implementing stricter compliance measures, Binance appeared to have regained the trust of regulators worldwide — including in South Korea.
Local media suggested that the FIU’s approval of the Gopax takeover was likely influenced by Binance’s resolution of its U.S. legal troubles.
The approval paves the way for Binance to officially return to South Korea, a market it exited in 2021.
Gopax is currently one of only five Korean exchanges authorized to facilitate crypto-to-fiat transactions, a privilege granted exclusively to platforms that meet strict Know Your Customer (KYC) and AML standards.
Gopax’s Recovery After a Crisis With Binance’s Help
Before the acquisition, Gopax faced a severe liquidity crisis in 2023 after its DeFi partner Genesis Global Capital (GGC) froze assets linked to Gopax’s GoFi product.
When GGC halted withdrawals and later filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January 2023, approximately $47 million (about 56.6 billion KRW) in GoFi customer funds were frozen.
Binance later stepped in, acquiring a majority stake in Gopax and pledging to inject capital to compensate affected users.
With FIU’s approval, Binance is now officially set to relaunch operations in South Korea — a move that strengthens its position in Asia, which has become a rising hub for the global blockchain industry.
