[2026 Parliamentary Audit] FIU STRs Reach 960,000 Through August; Analysis Staff Decline

STRs up 89.6% over 10 years
Annualized total this year projected to reach 1.44 million
Han Changmin: "Urgent need to expand response staff"

The number of suspicious transaction reports (STRs) filed with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) has surged, while the number of staff available to review and analyze them has actually declined. About 960,000 reports were filed through August this year, and at the current pace, the annual total is expected to exceed 1.4 million.

Han Changmin, a lawmaker from the Social Democratic Party. Photo by Kim Hyunmin.

According to data submitted by the FIU to Han Changmin, a lawmaker from the Social Democratic Party, 1,333,391 suspicious transaction reports were filed last year, up 89.6% from 703,356 in 2016. The total rose from 906,462 in 2023 to 1,084,142 in 2024, surpassing 1 million, and increased a further 23.0% year over year last year.

A total of 958,559 reports were filed through August this year. Simply annualizing the monthly average puts the projected total at about 1,438,000, 7.8% more than last year.

The increase in reports from virtual asset service providers has been even steeper. Their reports rose from 10,797 in 2022 to 16,076 in 2023 and 19,658 in 2024, before surging to 62,055 last year, a 215.7% increase year over year. A further 52,746 reports were filed through August this year.

By contrast, the FIU's actual staff count fell from 74 in 2024 to 71 last year and remained at 71 at the end of September this year. That is 8 fewer than its authorized staffing level of 79. The actual staff count in the Review and Analysis Office and its Review and Analysis Divisions 1, 2, and 3 also declined from 41 in both 2024 and last year to 40 this year.

Suspicious transaction reporting is a system under which financial institutions and other entities notify the FIU of transactions suspected of being related to money laundering or illicit assets. The FIU analyzes the reports and provides the findings to investigative agencies and others. Observers say that securing the personnel and expertise needed to support analytical capacity is important as the number of reports increases.

“If suspicious transaction reports surge while the number of staff available to review and analyze them declines, it could hamper a swift response to illicit transactions such as money laundering,” Han said. “We urgently need to expand our pool of specialists so we can handle the growing number of reports, including those involving virtual assets.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.