South Korean Exchange GOPAX Pauses Trading and Moves Customer Crypto Offline After Hack Threat

GOPAX has stopped most activity on its platform after it received an email warning of a possible attack. Deposits and regular withdrawals were halted Friday at 5:55 UTC, and trading ended at 6:53 UTC, with all open orders canceled. A company representative told local media that no hack or theft attempt had taken place so far.

What GOPAX Is Doing to Protect Funds

The exchange plans to shift every crypto asset into offline wallets, citing a string of leaks and attacks on financial firms and recommendations from regulators. Users can still ask for withdrawals through the support center, but manual checks and approvals may slow things down. GOPAX did not respond to a request for comment.

Cold Storage Rules in South Korea

The move follows a call from the Financial Services Commission for local exchanges to hold more in cold wallets after the $6.3 billion Binance hack. Exchanges must keep at least 80% of customer assets offline, and data showed GOPAX held 80.54% at the end of September, barely above the minimum.

Wider Security Concerns in Korea

In October, the regulator reported cybersecurity weaknesses at 130 of 555 financial companies it reviewed. It named GOPAX’s operator Streami and the exchange Prabang among 16 firms tied to earlier incidents, with tighter oversight planned. Prabang halted services after unusual hot wallet withdrawals on Oct. 24, with losses of about 100 million won, or $70,000, and says it will repay customers from company funds.