GOPAX Goes Cold After a Hack Threat, Leaving Trading and Withdrawals on Ice

South Korean crypto exchange GOPAX suspended trading, deposits and standard withdrawals on Friday after receiving an email threatening a hack, according to local newspaper Kyunghyang Shinmun. A GOPAX representative told the newspaper that no hack or attempted theft had occurred at that point. GOPAX halted deposits and standard withdrawals at 5:55 am UTC, while trading stopped at 6:53 UTC. All unfilled orders were canceled.

GOPAX said it plans to transfer all crypto assets to offline wallets to protect users following a series of leaks and hacking incidents affecting financial institutions. The exchange cited recommendations from financial regulators. Customers can still request withdrawals through GOPAX’s support center, but the exchange warned that manual verification and approvals could delay processing. Cointelegraph reached out to GOPAX for comment but had not received a response by publication time.

The suspension came days after South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) urged domestic exchanges to increase cold-wallet holdings following the $6.3 billion Binance hack. South Korean exchanges must keep at least 80% of customer crypto assets in cold storage. Financial Supervisory Service data previously showed that GOPAX held 80.54% of user assets offline at the end of September, near the required minimum.

In October, the FSC reported cybersecurity deficiencies at 130 of 555 financial companies reviewed nationwide. The regulator also identified GOPAX operator Streami and crypto exchange Prabang among 16 companies involved in earlier security incidents, prompting plans for tighter cybersecurity oversight.

South Korean exchange Prabang also suspended services after detecting abnormal withdrawals from its hot wallet on Oct. 24. The exchange reported about 100 million won ($70,000) in losses, according to Yonhap News Agency. Prabang said it would reimburse affected customers using company funds. South Korea is also seeking a 4th crypto tax delay, with a 2029 start targeted.