Court Rules No Requirement Under the Law to Disclose Crypto Assets A South Korean court has finally acquitted member of parliament Kim Nam-kuk of charges associated with hiding his cryptocurrency assets. A court says he is not obligated by law under current legislation to file virtual assets.
On Feb. 10, South Korean newspaper Chosun Daily reported that Judge Jeong Woo-Yong of the 9th Criminal Division of the Southern Seoul District Court ruled acquittal of fraud in obstruction against Kim.
Kim was charged for liquidating some crypto assets without reporting about $4.5 million profit and prior to forcing the “Travel Rule” which is an ordinance from the FATF or the Financial Action Task Force.
The scandal made Kim have to leave the Democratic Party. He said he did this to lighten the burden his party colleagues had to face because of the lawsuit.
Prosecutors Allege Concealment On Purpose
Prosecutors alleged that Kim intentionally hid his holdings in cryptocurrencies to avoid the review of the National Assembly’s Ethics Committee over lawmakers’ financial disclosures.
On Dec. 18, 2024, prosecutors requested a six-month prison sentence for Kim on charges that he reported his total assets as 1.2 billion won ($834,000) in 2021 while holding nearly 9.9 billion won ($6.8 million) in cryptocurrency.
Prosecutors said the unreported holdings could pose a conflict of interest and that he impeded the Ethics Committee’s review of lawmakers’ financial assets.
Court Finds Defendant Not Guilty, Due to Lack of Evidence
Judge Jeong explained that virtual assets were not a subject of obligatory declaration according to the Public Service Ethics Act at the time of declaration. Given the circumstances, it was difficult for the court to conclude that Kim was obliged to report his crypto assets.
Moreover, it said that even though the Ethics Committee could not verify Kim’s total assets, there was no apparent evidence of its review authority being obstructed by deceit.
This is considered a case without criminal evidence,” the court concluded.
Possible Appeal and Political Consequences
Though Kim has been cleared in the court of first instance, prosecutors still can appeal the decision to the higher court.
As a member of the National Assembly, Kim had a say in legislation regarding digital assets. He was reportedly for a proposal to delay the imposition of a 20% tax on crypto gains. Critics have questioned whether Kim’s undisclosed crypto holdings presented a conflict of interest, but he denied wrongdoing.
