Key Highlights
- A custom-built algorithm now scans trading data at sub-second intervals to uncover manipulation previously invisible to the untrained eye.
- The system surpassed human performance in pilot tests by identifying suspicious activity patterns that investigators had originally overlooked.
- By late 2026, the regulator plans to integrate LLMs and on-chain tracking to map out fraudulent account networks and fund flows.
South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) announced on Monday that it would begin using a new AI-based surveillance system to combat unfair virtual asset trading. The system, the Virtual Assets Intelligence System for Trading Analysis (VISTA), was developed by the regulator’s Virtual Asset Investigation Bureau.
According to the official announcement, VISTA uses a new sliding window grid search algorithm to automatically spot price manipulation. The upgrade was launched in Seoul to tackle the growing complexity of high-frequency trading and API-based market abuses that have often escaped manual checks.
Using the new system, the FSS hopes to better protect consumers and establish a transparent order in the rapidly changing virtual asset market. This is a major shift from the laborious process of manual checks to high-speed data processing.
Enhanced detection capabilities
The FSS confirmed that the new algorithm can break down suspicious trading periods into sub-second intervals. This allows for a level of analysis that human investigators couldn’t achieve before. The regulator stated that the system has already shown its effectiveness by identifying all suspicious intervals in previously closed cases and even uncovering additional manipulative actions that investigators had previously missed.
This launch is a key part of the FSS’s larger strategy to incorporate strong computing power, including high-performance GPUs and CPUs, into its daily enforcement activities to keep up with the technical challenges of the cryptocurrency sector.
Evolution of infrastructure
The development builds on the FSS’s earlier efforts to improve its internal Virtual Asset Intelligence System. Since it started, the agency has used Python-based analysis tools to visualize trading patterns and identify unusual transaction indicators.
However, as unfair trading practices became more advanced and high-frequency, the FSS recognized the need for a more powerful infrastructure. In late 2025, the agency began to prepare for this transition by acquiring high-performance servers to support AI integration and parallel data processing.
Advanced VISTA technology
The updated VISTA platform centers on the sliding window grid search technique. Unlike traditional methods that look at broad snapshots, this approach analyzes every possible sub-segment from time-series data, from fractions of a second to several months.
Because this method requires extensive computational resources, the FSS has optimized its platform for parallel processing. This allows it to analyze hundreds of thousands of segments at the same time.
In the pilot testing involving five different digital assets, the algorithm either matched or outperformed human investigation efforts, as evidenced by the higher abnormal trading indicators in all test scenarios.
Future AI roadmap
The FSS plans to expand its AI capabilities through a multi-stage roadmap set for completion by the end of 2026. The next phase will involve the development of clustering algorithms to automatically identify groups of suspicious accounts participating in organized price manipulation.
The regulator also plans to employ Large Language Models (LLMs) to analyze text data from thousands of different virtual assets to identify possible fraud. The final phase will involve the development of a network graph-based tracking system to analyze on-chain data and fund movements, enabling investigators to view connections between suspects and their transactions.
Future global regulation
The FSS is positioning itself as a leader in crypto regulation by moving toward an AI-focused enforcement model. With the automation of the detection of price manipulation, as well as the expansion of services into account clustering and on-chain tracking, the agency believes that it will be able to largely reduce the processing time of cases.
The FSS said that it will continue to improve its AI-powered investigation system to quickly detect unfair trading. It will take strict actions through thorough investigations to protect users and create a stable market.
Also Read: South Korea Dismantles $102M Crypto Laundering Ring
