Prosecutor General Orders Strict Action Against Five Major Virtual Asset Crimes Including Pyramid Schemes and Market Manipulation

Prosecutor's office in front of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, Seocho-gu, Seoul [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The Supreme Prosecutors' Office has classified multi-level marketing and exchange price manipulation frauds under the pretext of virtual currencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as 'major virtual asset crimes' and has instructed all local prosecutors' offices nationwide to respond strictly.

The Criminal Division of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Hwang Byung-joo) announced on the 13th that it held a "National Local Prosecutors' Office Dedicated Prosecutors Meeting on Responding to Multiple Victim Crimes Affecting Ordinary Citizens" at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office building in Seocho-gu, Seoul, to discuss measures to eradicate virtual asset crimes and illegal private financing crimes. The meeting was attended by 32 dedicated prosecutors designated at 27 prosecutors' offices nationwide.

At the meeting, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office identified the "five major types of virtual asset crimes" that the prosecution will focus on responding to in the future. These include investment frauds using virtual currency and NFT development as bait, multi-level marketing fraud targeting the elderly linked to real estate and virtual currency speculation, dissemination of false business plans using virtual currency, and manipulation of virtual asset balances and prices.

Additionally, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office noted an increase in illegal private financing crimes, such as unregistered lenders charging exorbitant interest rates to ordinary citizens or using debtors' personal information to threaten them, and instructed to strengthen cooperation with the police and special judicial police of local governments.

The prosecution plans to actively investigate crimes with severe nature and large-scale damages, arrest related individuals, and confiscate criminal proceeds such as interest exceeding the legal limit.

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