Constitutional Court Rules Unconstitutional the Financial Real Name Act Provision Penalizing Asking for Others' Bank Account Numbers

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[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The Constitutional Court has ruled that the current provision of the Real Name Financial Transactions Act, which punishes individuals for asking financial institution employees for others' account numbers or other financial transaction information, is unconstitutional.

On the 24th, the Constitutional Court delivered an 8 to 1 decision declaring unconstitutional the first paragraph of Article 4 of the Real Name Financial Transactions Act, ruling that it violates the constitutional principle of proportionality. As a result, the part of Article 4, Paragraph 1 of the Real Name Financial Transactions Act stating "No one shall request transaction information, etc., from persons employed by financial companies" has lost its effect.

The court stated, "The provision under review uniformly prohibits and criminally punishes requests for information without considering the reasons or circumstances for the request, the manner of the act, or the content of the requested transaction information," adding, "This exceeds the necessary scope to achieve the legislative purpose and violates the principle of minimal infringement."

The current Article 4, Paragraph 1 of the Real Name Financial Transactions Act stipulates that financial institution employees must not provide or disclose transaction information or data without the written request or consent of the account holder (including trustees and beneficiaries). It also prohibits anyone from requesting another person's transaction information from financial employees.

However, exceptions allow financial institutions to provide specific individuals' transaction information in cases such as court submission orders or warrants, tax authorities verifying inheritance, gifts, or tax evasion, when the National Assembly's state audit committee has approved submission, or when necessary for financial authorities' investigations.

This case arose when citizen A was prosecuted for requesting another person's account number from a bank employee. The Seoul Central District Court, stating that "criminalizing the mere act of asking a financial institution employee for another person's account number or similar financial transaction information for any reason loses balance with the right to privacy," found a constitutional issue with the Real Name Financial Transactions Act and requested a constitutional review, which was then examined by the Constitutional Court.

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