Naju City Conducts Comprehensive Crackdown on Illegal Circulation of Local Currency

[Naju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yukbong] Naju City, Jeollanam-do (Mayor Kang In-gyu) is taking steps to eradicate fraudulent distribution activities of the local currency, Naju Sarang Gift Certificates.

The city announced on the 18th that it will conduct a comprehensive crackdown on fraudulent distribution by the end of this month, following a surge in the circulation of Naju Sarang Gift Certificates due to emergency disaster relief payments and agricultural and fishery public interest allowances.

This crackdown is a measure to preemptively block various fraudulent activities arising from the circulation of gift certificates in the market due to discounts such as a 10% discount when purchasing the certificates.

Additionally, the approach involves identifying suspicious franchise stores through the integrated local currency management system or resident reports, conducting preliminary analysis, and then visiting the targeted stores on-site to verify fraudulent distribution.

The main types of violations targeted include ‘accepting gift certificates in restricted business sectors such as gambling-related industries,’ ‘accepting gift certificates exceeding actual sales amounts,’ ‘refusal to accept local currency payments or causing inconvenience to users,’ and ‘purchasing gift certificates under another person's name and then exchanging them,’ with focused inspections based on fraudulent distribution cases from other regions.

Those involved in illegal sales or exchanges will be fined up to 20 million KRW according to the ‘Act on the Promotion of Use of Local Gift Certificates’ and related laws.

Minor violations such as failure to comply with franchise store obligations will result in guidance, correction recommendations, or administrative actions such as franchise registration cancellation, while cases revealing large-scale fraudulent distribution will be referred to the police for investigation.

Previously, the city issued gift certificates worth 83 billion KRW last year and is expanding issuance to 100 billion KRW this year, focusing on revitalizing the local economy affected by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.

Mayor Kang In-gyu stated, “We will do our best to establish systematic management and circulation order in accordance with the purpose of issuing Naju Sarang Gift Certificates,” and added, “We ask for the active interest and cooperation of civil society to ensure that the purpose is not undermined by cases of fraudulent distribution.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.