Ministry of Justice Establishes Special Team to Combat Crypto Criminal Activities
In a strong move against fraud and market manipulation in the cryptocurrency industry, South Korea’s Ministry of Justice has launched a special task force. This collaborative effort with local regulatory bodies aims to crack down on illicit activities that have been affecting citizens, such as price manipulation, unregistered crypto exchanges, and deposit fraud. According to a regulatory document, the country has already seen over $1.6 billion of illicit activity involving crypto this year. The task force’s primary goal is to dismantle schemes that promise high returns on crypto investments. Additionally, the Ministry plans to enforce the Virtual Asset User Protection Act, which will come into effect in July, to safeguard the assets held by crypto users.
South Korea’s decision to establish this task force demonstrates its commitment to creating a transparent trading environment for cryptocurrencies, despite lagging behind other regions in terms of crypto adoption. The country is facing growing pressure to approve cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) after the recent approval of spot Ethereum ETFs by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Jung Eui-jung, the head of the Korean Stockholders’ Alliance, has stressed the importance of following the U.S. example by endorsing Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs. This reflects the frustration with Seoul’s cautious approach to cryptocurrency regulation. The Korean tax service is also reportedly considering the development of a new platform to monitor all crypto transactions.
