According to a July 28 report by Digital Asset, the OKX: Trade Bitcoin & Crypto app has returned to South Korea's Google Play Store after approximately four days of suspension. The exchange's Android app resumed normal distribution as of 8:00 a.m. local time on July 28, allowing users to install new versions or update existing applications. This restoration comes roughly four days after South Korean users lost access to new downloads and updates through Google Play on July 24.
While OKX has regained platform access, Bybit remains unavailable on the Korean Google Play Store. As reported by Digital Asset, Bybit's app, which became unavailable on July 10, was still blocked from search results and installation at the time of publication. This places Bybit in a different position compared to OKX, which has become the first of the recently restricted overseas exchanges to return to the platform.
According to Digital Asset's July 24 investigation, 29 overseas cryptocurrency derivatives exchange apps had become unavailable on the Korean version of Google Play. The investigation found that 17 apps could no longer be found through search, 6 displayed an 'Unavailable' notice, and 6 showed a message stating the service was not available in the user's region. Both OKX and Bybit were included among the affected exchanges, with OKX becoming inaccessible on July 24 and Bybit on July 10.
The restrictions appear to extend beyond South Korea's Financial Intelligence Unit enforcement list, as reported by Digital Asset. 14 of the blocked platforms had already been identified by the FIU as unreported virtual asset service providers, while 15 exchanges, including OKX, Bybit, Gemini, WhiteBIT and BitMEX, had not been referred to law enforcement but were still unavailable through Google Play. South Korean regulators have increased enforcement across the digital asset sector, with authorities investigating more than 40 suspected cases of unfair crypto trading during the first two years of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act.
The app's return to South Korea comes as OKX continues expanding its regulated operations outside the country. Earlier this month, OKX Europe launched a one-way conversion service allowing customers across 30 European Union and European Economic Area countries to deposit USDT and convert holdings into MiCA-compliant USDC. The company also expanded its institutional presence, with former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo joining OKX's board of directors on July 20 after advising the exchange since 2023 on U.S. regulatory strategy.
