Prosecutors Indict Real Owner of South Korea's Largest Cryptocurrency Exchange 'Bithumb' for Fraud Involving 100 Billion Won

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The actual owner of Bithumb, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in South Korea, has been indicted on fraud charges involving approximately 100 billion won.

The 14th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kim Ji-wan) announced on the 6th that they have indicted Lee, the actual owner of Bithumb and former chairman of the boards of Bithumb Holdings and Bithumb Korea, without detention on charges of fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.

The prosecution stated that although the amount involved in the fraud is large, Lee was indicted without detention considering his sincere attendance during the investigation and the fact that he paid about 70% of the acquired amount as capital gains tax.

Lee is accused of deceiving Kim, chairman of BK Group, in October 2018 by proposing the acquisition of Bithumb and promising to issue and list the so-called "Bithumb Coin" (BXA) on Bithumb, thereby embezzling approximately 112 billion won as a deposit.

Chairman Kim trusted Lee's words and used part of the funds obtained from the pre-sale of BXA as capital to purchase shares of Bithumb. However, BXA was not listed on Bithumb, and Kim's acquisition of Bithumb also fell through.

Victims who invested in BXA filed complaints against both Lee and Chairman Kim, but investigative authorities regarded Chairman Kim as a victim deceived by Lee as well and did not prosecute him.

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