Coin Crime Response 'Dream Team' Assembled... Lee Jeong-ryeol, Head of Joint Investigation Unit, "Strict Punishment for Virtual Asset Abuse"

Lee Jeong-ryeol, the inaugural head of the "Joint Investigation Unit on Virtual Asset Crimes" (JIVAC), stated on the 26th, "We will create a transparent virtual asset market through cooperation with related agencies."

Key officials, including Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok, are taking photos before unveiling the plaque at the launch ceremony of the Joint Investigation Team for Virtual Asset Crimes held on the 26th at the Southern District Prosecutors' Office in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

JIVAC held its launch ceremony at 2:20 PM on the same day at the annex of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul. The event was attended by Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok, Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Governor Lee Bok-hyun, Korea Exchange Chairman Son Byung-doo, Korea Customs Service Commissioner Ko Gwang-hyo, FSS Governor Lee Bok-hyun, and Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) Director Lee Yoon-soo, among others.

JIVAC is established and operated within the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office, which focuses on financial and securities crimes. The unit consists of about 30 specialized investigation and analysis personnel from seven national agencies, including the prosecution, FSS, FIU, National Tax Service, Korea Customs Service, Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation, and Korea Exchange.

The investigation and analysis team analyzes virtual asset issuers and distributors, detects suspicious transactions, investigates fraudulent coins, and forwards findings to the investigation team. The investigation team is responsible for investigation, prosecution, maintaining public prosecution, and recovering criminal proceeds. The investigation team will request asset recovery from the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office's dedicated asset recovery team, promptly proceeding with seizure and preservation from the early stages of investigation and enforcing the preserved assets after the court's final judgment.

On the 26th, at the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, participants including Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok greeted employees at the joint investigation unit office during the launch ceremony of the Virtual Asset Crime Joint Investigation Unit. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Lee emphasized, "Although the number of virtual asset users has recently surged, illegal manipulation and exploitation by certain forces have driven expectations and hopes for virtual assets into distrust and despair, causing significant harm to the public and the national economy. JIVAC will thoroughly investigate illegal manipulation and exploitation of virtual assets by fully mobilizing its capabilities through cooperation with related agencies and swiftly recover criminal proceeds to protect the public's property."

In his congratulatory remarks, Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok said, "When the Dutch East India Company established the first stock exchange in the 1600s, no one imagined it would develop into the capital markets we have today. Similarly, when Bitcoin emerged in 2009 based on blockchain technology, hardly anyone expected virtual assets to become investment products comparable to stocks."

He added, "However, exploiting gaps in laws and regulations, virtual assets have proliferated throughout issuance, listing, and trading processes, leading to frequent delisting and unfair trading. JIVAC was launched to ensure the early virtual asset market does not shrink but stabilizes. It is expected to contribute not only to protecting market participants but also to the development of the national economy."

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