PANews reported on May 21 that, according to an announcement on the official website of the South Korean exchange Bithumb, due to suspicions that the overseas payment platform Heleket is involved in money laundering and terrorist financing activities, Bithumb has immediately suspended all virtual asset deposit and withdrawal transactions with Heleket, effective immediately upon the announcement. The exchange stated that this action is to comply with the Specific Financial Information Act and the Virtual Asset User Protection Act, and to protect user assets. It also reminded investors to be cautious when using unverified overseas services to prevent irrecoverable losses due to hacking attacks or interruptions in deposits and withdrawals.