'Coin Listing Corruption' Former Coinone Employee and Broker Sentenced to Prison in First Trial

Director in charge of listing sentenced to 4 years in prison, listing team leader 3 years 6 months
Listing brokers sentenced to 1 year 6 months and 2 years 6 months respectively

Two former Coinone executives and two brokers were all sentenced to prison for exchanging bribes in return for listing coins on the cryptocurrency exchange Coinone.

At 11 a.m. on the 26th, Judge Kim Jeong-gi of the Seoul Southern District Court Criminal Division 7 sentenced former Coinone listing director Jeon Mo to four years in prison and ordered the payment of approximately 1.93 billion KRW in fines on charges of embezzlement and obstruction of business. Former Coinone listing team leader Kim Mo, charged with the same offenses, was sentenced to three years and six months in prison and fined approximately 880 million KRW.

Brokers Go Mo and Hwang Mo, charged with embezzlement, were sentenced to one year and six months and two years and six months in prison, respectively. With the prison sentences handed down, Go’s bail was also revoked.

Jeon and Kim received requests from Go and Hwang from 2020 until last year to list domestically issued coins on Coinone and accepted bribes in return. Jeon was charged with receiving 194 million KRW from the brokers, while Kim was charged with receiving about 81 million KRW. Both Jeon and Kim were also charged with obstructing the operations of the cryptocurrency exchange.

Judge Kim stated, "The total amount of money exchanged as bribes for coin listings reached approximately 2.75 billion KRW, and considering the scale, duration, and organized methods of the crime, the nature of the offense is very serious," adding, "A large number of unspecified Coinone members suffered disadvantages, and the trust in the virtual asset market was undermined." He further explained, "As virtual assets integrated into the regulated market have deeply rooted themselves in our society, the listing operations of virtual asset exchanges are akin to a public domain, requiring thorough supervision and management. Listing staff must uphold a high degree of compliance and integrity. Therefore, embezzlement and bribery related to this must be strictly punished."

However, Judge Kim also noted, "The company bears considerable responsibility for failing to properly supervise and manage the listing corruption by its executives and employees," adding, "Many investors suffered losses due to the lack of oversight systems and regulations." He continued, "The virtual asset monitoring measures were not yet established or standardized as they are now, and the defendants’ awareness of the illegality was not clearly evident, which were also considered as common mitigating factors."

While the other defendants admitted to the charges, Kim’s side acknowledged the embezzlement charges but denied the obstruction of business charges. Kim’s defense argued, "In the absence of clear regulations to identify market manipulation (MM, Market Making), we did not know that MM companies would engage in large-scale wash trading and illegal activities," and "Kim did not directly participate in the actual acts such as selecting MM companies."

However, the court did not accept Kim’s claims. Judge Kim said, "Kim appears to have had considerable knowledge and interest in wash trading, as evidenced by articles he wrote raising issues related to the exchange," adding, "He also seemed well aware of the collusive relationships among listing brokers, listing foundations, and MM companies." He further stated, "Considering Kim’s position as listing team leader and the fact that he received money, it can be recognized that he conspired with Jeon to obstruct business."

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