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A new cryptocurrency scam has become prevalent in the country, with financial authorities calling on investors to remain vigilant against fraudulent activities regarding coin investment.

Under the latest scam, crypto swindlers have conned would-be investors out of money under the pretext of offering well-known coins listed at major crypto exchanges at prices lower than market rates.

Such cases have proliferated recently, amid the global cryptocurrency market's excitement over the recent landmark approval by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) earlier this month. Korean financial authorities also recently began examining whether to follow suit and approve such bitcoin ETF products here.

Following the watershed decision, the price of bitcoin has been showing a rather stable move. It's because the price had already factored in the positive effect of the ETF approval during the past months, when several major U.S.-based management firms proceeded with the application procedures. Over the past six months, the price of Bitcoin rose over 46 percent, reaching 56 million won ($42,585) in Korea. The rise over the past year surpasses 117.7 percent.

Against the backdrop, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) issued a consumer alert on Sunday, warning the public of investment fraud related to digital assets.

The state-run financial watchdog agency also disclosed details of various fraud cases reported to it to raise public awareness.

One such case shows that an individual was approached by a company through a social media platform that the firm is selling a large market-cap coin listed on a major domestic exchange at around 30 percent level of the current market price. In order to justify offering the coin at a lower price, the company told the individual that they're required to set up a lockup period for the coins, showing a forged payment guarantee document.

Another case shows scammers selling fake coins with names similar to well-known coins but with disparate networks.

The FSS stressed that it is essential to be vigilant against proposals selling major digital assets at a lower cost without clear reasons.