Lee Jung-hoon of Bithumb accused of 112 billion won fraud, acquitted in first trial

Lee Jung-hoon, the former chairman of the Bithumb Korea board and the actual owner of the cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, who was indicted on charges of fraud involving 100 billion won, is attending the first trial sentencing hearing held at the Seoul Central District Court on the afternoon of the 3rd.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The actual owner of the cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, who was indicted on charges of fraud involving approximately 100 billion won related to the listing of 'Bithumb Coin' (BXA), was acquitted in the first trial.

On the afternoon of the 3rd, the Criminal Division 34 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Kang Gyutae) acquitted former Bithumb Korea Board Chairman Lee Jeonghoon, who was charged with fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, stating, "Based solely on the evidence submitted by the prosecution, it cannot be recognized that the defendant guaranteed the listing of BXA."

The court stated, "Considering that the exchange announced the listing of Bithumb Coin and even conducted an airdrop (free distribution), and that when Nonghyup sent an official letter regarding the domestic sale of BXA, the defendant responded inaccurately, the reason BXA was not listed is unrelated to the defendant's intention or ability."

Furthermore, the court pointed out, "The victim's claims lack consistency," and added, "It cannot be considered that the victim was inexperienced in investment or lacked knowledge and information about virtual assets to the extent of being mistaken by solely trusting the defendant's words that 'if BXA is listed, the sales proceeds could be used to finance the acquisition of Bithumb.'"

Upon hearing the acquittal verdict in court, former Chairman Lee shed tears. When asked about his feelings by reporters, he said, "I'm sorry. I will speak next time," and left the courthouse in a prepared vehicle.

At the previous sentencing hearing, the prosecution requested an eight-year prison sentence. At that time, the prosecutor emphasized, "The amount of damage is very large, especially the losses suffered by general coin investors," and added, "The defendant continues to deny the crime, and due to the serious nature of the offense, a heavy sentence should be imposed."

Lee's defense attorney argued, "The structure of this case is a typical stock trading contract," and claimed that the contract was faithfully executed according to standard procedures. They also asserted that BK Group Chairman Kim filed a complaint against former Chairman Lee to avoid criminal responsibility.

In his final statement, former Chairman Lee said, "At the time of sale, Bithumb was the number one exchange in Korea," and added, "We signed the contract based on a contract drafted by lawyers from a major law firm." He expressed, "I sincerely apologize for causing difficulties to employees and social harm," and stated, "I never made any problematic promises or deceived anyone during the company sale."

Former Chairman Lee was indicted on charges of embezzling approximately 112 billion won as a deposit by deceiving Chairman Kim in October 2018, proposing the acquisition of Bithumb, issuing the so-called 'Bithumb Coin' (BXA), and promising to list it on Bithumb. It was investigated that Chairman Kim, trusting Lee's words, partially used the proceeds from the pre-sale of BXA as funds to purchase Bithumb shares.

However, BXA was never listed on Bithumb, and Chairman Kim's acquisition of Bithumb also fell through. Victims who invested in BXA filed complaints against both former Chairman Lee and Chairman Kim, but investigative authorities judged that Chairman Kim was also a victim deceived by Lee and did not punish him.

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