South Korea Forms Investigation Team to Fight Crypto Illegalities

• South Korea is accelerating its efforts to regularise crypto adoption.

• Prosecutor’s department is making cryptocurrencies a trusted digital asset.

For a long time, cryptocurrencies have been at the forefront of several attacks by hackers. Money worth millions is lost from crypto wallets due to hackers wreaking havoc over the crypto markets. Due to the rise in cryptocurrency adoption, hackers’ illegal activities have also grown. South Korea is one of the places worldwide that has seen several individuals losing their money to hackers. Therefore, to stop such activities, South Korean prosecutors and financial authorities have taken a combined decision. They have decided to put together an interagency crypto crime division that would specialise in cracking down on illegal activities. 

Why South Korean Government MadeThis Decision?

South Korea is safeguarding the interest of its investors from facing losses in crypto investments. Thus, the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors Office released a statement regarding their intention to launch an investigation branch. This joint virtual asset investigation team will comprise 30 top-notch investigators from almost seven government agencies. Some will join the prosecution, Financial Supervisory Service, National Tax Service, and the Korea Customs Service. 

On further announcement by the Prosecutor, it was revealed that until the gaps in crypto market regulation are fulfilled, this investigation team would stay together at the bare minimum. Due to the sudden implosion of TerraUSD (USTC) and Luna tokens created by South Korea’s own Do Kwon, the spotlight was on this country. 

In addition, this sudden crash of a stable coin resulted in the crypto market going into a panic mode, thereby losing $2 Trillion in the process. Amid those huge crypto debacles, South Korea started accelerating its efforts to resolve the regulation issues. Moreover, the crash of TerraUSD is not the only reason behind the decision by the South Korean government. 

How are Crypto-llegal Activities Getting Curbed?

The investigation department, which is set up by the Prosecutor’s office, will primarily focus on digital assets. It consists of the high volatility of the digital market, illegal trading, tax evasion, money laundering, and unauthorised exchanges. When the Prosecutor’s office released a report, this investigation team had already stepped up their efforts. 

In that extensive report, irregular coin investments and trading were found to be conducted by Rep. Kim Nam-kuk. Following the controversy, he had to step down from the role of Democratic Party of Korea leadership. Corruption allegations related to the illegal listing of Coinone’s coin are being investigated. 

Moreover, this is not the first time the South Korean Prosecutor Department has curated an investigation task force. In 2013, a joint investigative unit was launched that primarily focused on financial stock manipulation. 

Conclusion

The landmark decision by the South Korean Government to hand over the pressure of crypto markets to Prosecutors was a great choice. Although it might not have been popular initially, it was deemed fruitful with time. The Prosecutor’s office has managed to curb illegal crypto activities by a large number.