South Korean Officials Reveal Significant Crypto Holdings

According to Cointelegraph, South Korea's Ethics Commission has disclosed that high-ranking public officials in the country possess an average of 35.1 million won ($24,000) in cryptocurrency assets. On March 27, the commission reported that over 20% of surveyed officials hold a total of 14.4 billion won ($9.8 million) in digital currencies. This revelation indicates that 411 out of 2,047 officials required to disclose their assets have invested in cryptocurrencies. Among them, Seoul City Councilor Kim Hye-young reported the highest amount, with holdings worth 1.76 billion won ($1.2 million). The officials' crypto portfolios include various assets such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), XRP (XRP), Dogecoin (DOGE), Luna Classic (LUNC), and others. The disclosure of these crypto holdings comes amid increasing demands for transparency from South Korea's leadership. In 2023, Prime Minister Han Deok-soo emphasized the need for high-ranking government officials to include cryptocurrencies in their property disclosures, equating them with other assets like precious metals. Consequently, on May 25, 2023, South Korea enacted legislation requiring public officials to report their crypto holdings. This law, effective from 2024, allows South Koreans to access information about the crypto assets of at least 5,800 public officials. Furthermore, in June 2024, crypto exchanges in South Korea introduced systems to facilitate the registration of crypto holdings, streamlining the disclosure process. The push for transparency was partly fueled by a controversy involving lawmaker Kim Nam-kuk, who faced accusations of liquidating and concealing crypto assets worth approximately $4.5 million. This incident occurred before the enforcement of the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF) "Travel Rule" in South Korea. Amid the legal proceedings, Kim resigned from the Democratic Party to alleviate the pressure on his colleagues. Although prosecutors sought a six-month prison sentence, Kim was acquitted after a judge determined that crypto assets were not subject to disclosure requirements at the time of his transactions. This case highlighted the need for clear regulations regarding the disclosure of digital assets by public officials.