The General Prosecutor’s office of South Korea announced this week the creation of a new operational group, which is charged with the task of fighting and preventing crimes in the sphere of cryptocurrency. This writes Cryptoglobe with reference to local broadcasting service of Korean Broadcasting System (KBS).
This step became the answer of the authorities to the growing wave of crime in the cryptocurrency space. The activities group will, in particular, the disclosure of fraudulent schemes, money laundering and other crimes related to financial technologies.
According to KBS, if in 2016 in South Korea were registered 53 cases of crimes involving cryptocurrencies, already in 2017, when the market went to record highs, this figure had risen to 453. In 2018, the number of such offences amounted to 4591.
It is reported that members of the operational group will be able to track the accounts of persons suspected of illegal receipt of funds, although exactly how this will be used for tools, not specified. They will also be able to share relevant information with other government agencies, to help in the organization of class-action lawsuits from investors, and, if necessary, will have the power to freeze Bank accounts.
It should be noted that crime in the sphere of cryptocurrency and the desire to protect investors was named among the main reasons that prompted the South Korean authorities in September 2017 to the introduction of the ban on ICO. However, as shown by the statistics above, it is unlikely that this step is justified.
Earlier this year a joint initiative in which they will compete with potential money laundering and other fraud schemes, announced the largest cryptocurrency exchanges South Korea — Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Upbit.
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