Following a data released by the Korean government, Korean news agency, Yonhap reported that crimes associated with cryptocurrencies have caused a financial loss of about 2.7 trillion won which is nearly .3 billion in the last two years.
The data from the government revealed that the monetary damage caused in a period of two years from July 2017 to June 2019 due to scams and fraudulent activities related to cryptocurrencies nearly estimated up to 2.69 trillion won. As per the ministry, in the above mentioned period, around 132 criminals and fraudsters have been accused and detained for cryptocurrency-related felonies, while another 288 were accused of the same without any physical detention.
A month ago, South Korean Justice Minister Park Sang-ki adjured strict action against cryptocurrency felons, and also ordered the prosecution to retrieve all the earnings acquired from such crimes.
Despite a reduction in the country’s cryptocurrency trading, the number of cryptocurrency exchanges and crimes related to them have escalated. The news agency further reported that this surge might have been the result of the adoption of opaque accounts called, beehive accounts. A few cryptocurrency exchanges have employed beehive accounts hoping to entice investors as these accounts allow exchanges to help investors dodge the obstacle of real-name trading and engage in cryptocurrencies transactions. As the South Korean government previously banned the use of anonymous bank accounts for transactions aiming to block fraudulent activities using cryptocurrencies.
The increase in the popularity of cryptocurrencies and its decentralized system has simultaneously made the system more vulnerable causing an increase in crimes related to the same.
South Korean politician, Je Youn-kyung of the Democratic Party initiated a bill that is currently unsettled, requesting to reinforce regulations for cryptocurrency exchanges. The government also presented guidelines suggesting the eradication of cryptocurrencies. But, the court adjudicated that the government’s involvement in cryptocurrencies was irrelevant.
