South Korea Busts Gambling Software Ring Serving 2,133 Internet Cafes and $87 Million in Bets

Ulsan police say they have arrested 15 people in a gambling-network case that tied together an illegal betting site, overseas support operations, and front companies in Seoul and Ulsan. For PSPs and acquirers, the useful detail is not the drama; it is the scale: the site was available in 2,133 internet cafes and processed $87 million in bets between December 2025 and May 2026.

1. Ulsan Police said the arrests included the operator of the illegal gambling venue, a managing director, an internal sales distributor, a developer, and staff from an overseas call center, all on gambling-law violations. Nine of the 15 arrested were taken into custody.
2. The group ran an illegal gambling website that was accessible from 2,133 internet cafes. According to police, the site handled $87 million in wagers from December 2025 to May 2026.
3. Financial operations and customer support were handled from an office in Vietnam. After authorities revoked their passports, the office staff returned to South Korea. Police are still searching for one remaining member of the group, who fled to the Philippines.
4. During the investigation, police seized $28,500 in cash, 25 mobile phones, 43 computers, and a MacBook used to develop the gambling software. A court also approved the confiscation of $1.98 million in criminal proceeds.
5. To disguise the illegal business, the group set up a textile manufacturing company in Seoul and an interior design company in Ulsan. That kind of front-company structure is the practical problem for payment teams: the merchant file can look ordinary while the underlying flow is anything but.