"My Money, My Account"... Kim Nam-guk Explains 'Coin Investment', but Suspicion Continues

Namguk Kim Appears on YouTube for Additional Explanation
"Plan to Submit Materials for Prosecutor Verification"

Regarding the suspicion that he once held virtual assets worth 6 billion KRW, Kim Nam-guk, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, has issued a clarification, but the related controversy is still ongoing.

On the 9th, following his statement the previous day about the virtual asset controversy, Representative Kim focused on explaining that there was nothing illegal. He appeared on the YouTube channel ‘Kim Eo-jun’s Humility is Difficult News Factory’ and said about the related suspicions, "I am thinking of throwing all the related materials to the prosecution so they can verify it." However, doubts have not subsided during the ongoing explanations.

Through his statement the previous day, Kim explained regarding the criticism that his coin purchase history was not disclosed, saying that all transactions were made only through his own account. Regarding media reports that he withdrew the entire 6 billion KRW worth of WEMIX coins before the real-name transaction system was implemented, he explained, "It was not a (cash) withdrawal but a transfer to a wallet verified by real-name authentication at another exchange."

Regarding his coin investment, Kim said, "I used my own account for all transaction processes," and added, "There were regulations according to the exchange’s own rules even before the real-name system. I used only my own account even before the real-name system." He repeatedly raised suspicions of a political investigation regarding this controversy. He claimed, "I heard that the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) requested an investigation to the prosecution in early last year," and said, "Holding onto this until now and releasing it through a specific media outlet is a political investigation."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

He also actively clarified suspicions that participating in a bill to defer taxation on virtual asset income for tax reduction purposes while holding a large amount of coins constitutes a conflict of interest. In July 2021, Kim co-sponsored the ‘Income Tax Act Amendment’ proposed by Democratic Party member Roh Woong-rae, which deferred taxation on virtual asset income. Regarding this, the ruling party and others raised concerns that delaying the taxation timing while holding a large amount of virtual assets was an attempt to reduce his own taxes. Kim rebutted, saying, "The conflict of interest clause in the National Assembly Act has been in effect since May 2022, so it does not apply, and in terms of content, it does not apply to laws repealing regulations targeting an unspecified majority," adding, "(If it were otherwise,) all cases where lawmakers who must pay comprehensive real estate tax propose or vote on bills reducing multi-homeowners’ taxes would be conflicts of interest."

However, suspicions still remain. The fluctuations in Kim’s real estate (including jeonse deposits) and savings are not smooth. For example, in his 2021 assets, LG Display stocks decreased while savings increased, but the funds used to purchase coins during this period are not clearly explained. Kim explained to some media outlets, "It’s because the money is not stagnant." There is a possibility that he realized profits midway after purchasing coins, but in his statement the previous day, he only mentioned, "I withdrew 4.4 million KRW from January to March 2022, which was the presidential election period," and "Comparing the total cash withdrawals in 2021 and 2022, the difference was only 2.64 million KRW, so there was not much difference."

Voices pointing out the attitude problem as a politician regarding the non-transparent ‘virtual asset’ investments during the public official asset disclosure process have also emerged. Democratic Party member Lee Yong-woo said on CBS Radio’s Kim Hyun-jung News Show, "Many young people suffered losses due to the high volatility in coin investments," and criticized, "It is not the attitude of a politician to say there is no problem legally and dismiss the pain of those people." Mentioning that virtual assets are excluded from asset reporting, which may conceal illegal funds, he said, "A black box is created, so the bill must be passed quickly."

In this regard, Democratic Party members including Kim Han-gyu also proposed the ‘Public Officials Ethics Act Amendment’ on the 2nd, which includes virtual assets in the registered assets of public officials. Kim’s bill adds virtual assets to the assets subject to registration and includes virtual asset service providers as institutions from which the Public Officials Ethics Committee can request data submission.

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