Kim Nam-guk Only Expresses Grievances... "Holds Cryptocurrency Worth 910 Million Won" (Comprehensive)

Issued a Statement to Directly Refute Allegations
Opposition Leadership: "Will Judge After Hearing Explanation"... Concerns Within the Party
Ruling Party Submits Disciplinary Proposal to Ethics Committee

The Democratic Party of Korea is facing repeated backlash, first over the 'money envelope scandal' and now over the '6 billion won cryptocurrency holding controversy.' The party recognizes the seriousness of the situation but has yet to present an official response. Prosecutors have launched an investigation into allegations that Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Nam-guk withdrew virtual assets worth approximately 6 billion won, but Kim has denied the claims as a "political attack."

On the 8th, Kim issued a statement and disclosed records of cryptocurrency sales and bank transfers. He stated, "The cryptocurrency investment was started using proceeds from the sale of stocks I held," adding, "The transfer records are clearly documented, and I only used wallet addresses under my real name that have been verified."

According to a media report on the 5th, Kim reportedly withdrew all 800,000 WEMIX coins between February and March of last year. At that time, the value of the WEMIX coins he held was said to have peaked at around 6 billion won.

Kim completely denied these allegations. He argued, "During the presidential election period, only 4.4 million won was withdrawn in cash from all accounts," and "The cryptocurrency transferred in mid-February 2022 was not withdrawn and converted to cash. It was merely moved to another real-name wallet under my name."

He also rebutted by stating, "As of now, the cryptocurrency I hold is worth about 910 million won," and "Combined, my actual assets amount to approximately 2.1 billion won." He further declared that he would respond to false reports with strong legal action.

On the same day, Kim also posted on Facebook, saying, "When Kim Geon-hee, a 7.2 billion won asset holder, buys 30,000 won slippers, she becomes a 'sold-out woman,' but when Democratic Party's Kim Nam-guk wears 30,000 won sneakers, he is labeled as 'pretending to be an ordinary citizen.' This is a political attack and a double standard."

Regarding the conflict of interest controversy, he stated, "I have never abused legislative power to protect my assets," and countered, "If this is a conflict of interest, then lawmakers with multiple homes rushing to pass laws to reduce comprehensive real estate taxes is a more direct conflict of interest."

The party leadership is currently conducting an internal investigation into Kim and has withheld its stance. Kwon Chil-seung, the Democratic Party's chief spokesperson, said during a back briefing after the Supreme Council meeting, "We are currently hearing various explanations from him," and regarding specific measures, "We believe we can make a judgment after hearing his explanation today."

Voices of concern are emerging both inside and outside the party. A senior Democratic Party lawmaker said, "He should acknowledge and apologize for parts that do not meet the public's expectations," and pointed out, "This is not something to respond to by just calling it a 'political attack.'"

Lee Jae-rang, spokesperson for the Justice Party, held a press conference on the same day and criticized, "Whether Kim is a 'stingy person' is neither curious nor important. The explanation that it is not 'illegal' is not what we expect from a lawmaker who knows better than anyone how to exploit loopholes in the law," adding, "The public is asking how Kim used cryptocurrency, which is far less transparent than stocks, to increase his wealth while serving in public office."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

About 20 lawmakers from the People Power Party submitted a disciplinary proposal against Kim to the National Assembly's Ethics Special Committee on the same day, citing 'violation of the Conflict of Interest Prevention Act.' Jeon Ju-hye, a People Power Party lawmaker, submitted the disciplinary proposal to the National Assembly's legislative affairs office in the afternoon, stating, "We submitted the disciplinary proposal because various actions during the large-scale withdrawal of 6 billion won worth of coins were judged to have violated the ethical code for public officials to prevent conflicts of interest as stipulated by the National Assembly Act."

Lawmaker Ji Seong-ho also said, "Young people in South Korea are angry after seeing many incidents, and the double standards of politicians are causing the National Assembly to lose public trust," adding, "It must be aligned with the public's expectations."

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