South Korea Plans 2026 Probes into Crypto Price Manipulation

The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) will step up scrutiny of suspected cryptocurrency price manipulation in 2026, targeting high-risk tactics such as large-scale “whale” trades, schemes that exploit exchange disruptions and coordinated trading via APIs or social media.

FSS Governor Lee Chang-jin said the agency will focus on practices that undermine market order, including coordinated manipulation and exploitation of exchange infrastructure. Planned probes will lean on automated detection, analyzing abnormal price movements at very short intervals and developing tools that flag suspected manipulation “sections” and related account groups.

The regulator also intends to use text analysis to identify coordinated misinformation that could drive artificial price swings. Investigations will cover distortions to price discovery, including so-called gating where deposit or withdrawal suspensions trap supply and create isolated movements.

South Korea

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