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Media Coverage
Details of the Indictment Against Haru Invest Executives for the '1 Trillion KRW Coin Exit Scam'
Prosecutors have specified in the indictment against Haru Invest executives, who deceived customers into depositing virtual assets worth 1.4 trillion KRW and then prohibited withdrawals, that they entrusted the management of 1.31 trillion KRW worth of virtual assets to an unqualified operator who did not meet the selection standards. According to the indictment filed on the 10th against the joint CEOs of Haru Invest, Mr. A (44) and Mr. B (40), and the business director Mr. C (40), they began entrusting the management of 90 Bitcoins in August 2020 to Mr. D, an unqualified operator who did not meet the criteria for selecting external asset managers. (omitted) The Virtual Asset Crime Joint Investigation Unit of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office (headed by Chief Prosecutor Lee Jeong-ryeol) filed detention indictments against these individuals on the 22nd and indicted the company's Chief Operating Officer, Mr. E (38), without detention. Hyeonsu “Elliot” Jin and Pureun “Ian” Hong, Managing partner at Decent Law Firm, representing the victims, stated, "This case is a global fraud scheme, with victims from more than 20 different nationalities. Their crimes must be thoroughly revealed during the trial process."
2024-03-10 Financial News -
Media Coverage
'We Mine Dormant Wallets and Give Away Bitcoin,' Beware of New Cryptocurrency Scam
As the price of Bitcoin has risen to the 90 million KRW range, the once-joking concept of a '100 million KRW Bitcoin' era is now on the horizon. With growing interest in the virtual asset (cryptocurrency) market, companies suspected of promoting new cryptocurrency-related scams are becoming more prevalent. According to the National Police Agency on the 7th, there were 281 cases of illegal activities related to virtual assets last year, more than double the number from the previous year (2022, 108 cases). Illegal activities in the virtual asset sector are broadly classified into three categories: Ponzi schemes and pyramid sales, illegal exchange activities, and other fraudulent purchasing schemes. However, new types of crimes continue to emerge. Recently, there have been cases where companies encourage investments by claiming that if you invest in a business mining Bitcoin from a large dormant wallet, you will receive a share of the Bitcoin. This has particularly spread among the elderly, with some individuals investing amounts ranging from 10 million KRW to tens of millions of KRW. (omitted) Hyeonsu “Elliot” Jin, Managing partner at Decent Law Firm, advised, "Even if they promise to distribute profits from successful Bitcoin mining, investors have no way to verify whether the Bitcoin mining has actually succeeded. If someone is promoting coin investment by showcasing large profits, you should first suspect it might be an investment scam. If you suspect an investment scam, seek help from a lawyer specializing in cryptocurrency fraud and file a criminal complaint or a lawsuit for the return of your investment."
2024-03-07 Korea Economy -
Media Coverage
Kimchi Coins Facing Delisting Even in Court, What Are the Chances of an Injunction Being Granted?
As the domestic virtual asset project SOMESING filed for an injunction against delisting on the 5th, the industry largely expects the request to be dismissed. This is because the courts have previously dismissed all delisting injunction applications. The judiciary has consistently recognized the authority and autonomy of virtual asset exchanges in deciding whether to continue supporting certain listings. (omitted) The court also emphasized exchange autonomy when dismissing the injunction request for Wemix’s delisting in December 2022. At the time, the court stated, "To effectively protect investors by maintaining the transparency and integrity of the virtual asset market," the exchange’s decision to continue or terminate trading support "should generally be respected unless there are special circumstances." Considering previous decisions, it seems unlikely that SOMESING will avoid delisting. Hyeonsu “Elliot” Jin, Attorney at Descent Law Firm, noted, "If there are no particularly different facts compared to previous cases, the same outcome is expected," and he assessed the likelihood of the injunction being granted as low.
2024-03-07 etoday -
Media Coverage
Stocks Losing Momentum, but Coins on the Rise with 'Value-Up'?
The concept of 'value-up,' which boosts corporate value by expanding shareholder returns, has emerged in the virtual asset market. The protagonist is Uniswap, the leading decentralized exchange project. This is done by expanding a type of dividend. With this news, other coin projects with high potential for shareholder returns have gained attention, leading to a sharp rise in related coin prices, reminiscent of the 'low PBR (Price-to-Book Ratio) market' in the domestic stock market. (omitted) The proposal involves distributing Uniswap's profits to investors who have staked 'UNI,' which plays a similar role to shares in the stock market. In other words, it is akin to Uniswap, the exchange, distributing its earnings to shareholders. Legally, there is not expected to be a significant issue. This is because Uniswap did not conduct an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) and distributed UNI tokens for free. Hyeonsu “Elliot” Jin, Attorney at Descent Law Firm, stated, "Although staking is not clearly regulated, and the SEC may raise concerns, based on past precedents, it seems unlikely that the SEC will raise an issue regarding the securities nature of Uniswap."
2024-02-26 Maeil Economy -
Media Coverage
Investors Deceived by 'Scam Coin' through Celebrity Endorsements in Promotions
"Scam Coin" has emerged as a major crime in the virtual asset industry, with suspicions that popular YouTuber Oking and former soccer player Lee Chun-soo are involved in fraudulent virtual asset schemes. A scam coin refers to a virtual asset created for fraudulent purposes. Last year, the prosecution directly mentioned "scam coins" in indictments, closely monitoring related crimes. The typical method of scam coin operations involves perpetrators running a compartmentalized organization, gaining victims' trust, inflating the coin's price, and then dumping their holdings at a high point. (omitted) There have also been cases where public officials were implicated, leading to formal complaints. The Chief of a local police department in Gyeonggi Province, known as Chief A, was reported to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) after it was revealed that he met with Mr. Choi, the former CEO of W Coin. Choi is currently under investigation for another coin, G Coin, which is suspected to be a scam coin. Attorneys Hyeonsu “Elliot” Jin and Pureun “Ian” Hong of Descent Law Firm, who filed the complaint, stated, "Despite investigating Mr. Choi, the CEO of a virtual asset company, in his jurisdiction, Chief A had personal dealings and took photographs with him. Even though he had personal involvement, he failed to report it to the National Police Agency or the Ministry of Interior and Safety, nor did he request to be recused." Chief A defended himself, saying, "I had no idea that Mr. A, who I knew as a friend's son, was involved in scam coin allegations."
2024-02-25 Financial News -
Media Coverage
Attorney Pureun “Ian” Hong Files Complaint Against Current Police Officer Who Met with 'Scam Coin' CEO Under Investigation
A high-ranking police officer who met with a CEO under investigation for suspected "scam coin" (cryptocurrency fraud) has been reported to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO). Attorneys Hyeonsu “Elliot” Jin and Pureun “Ian” Hong of Descent Law Firm filed a complaint on the 19th against Chief A of a local police department in Gyeonggi Province for violating the Public Official Conflict of Interest Prevention Act and neglect of duty. The two attorneys are representing victims who invested in cryptocurrency B-Coin. The complainants stated, "Chief A took personal interest in a case where his department was investigating Choi, the CEO of a cryptocurrency company, and took photographs with him." They added, "Despite having a personal relationship with the suspects, Chief A did not report it to the National Police Agency or the Ministry of Interior and Safety, nor did he request to be recused." They further explained, "Chief A invited Choi to his office, took photographs, and the suspects used these photos on social media (SNS) to further their fraud scheme." They concluded, "Chief A neglected his duties by forming personal relationships with suspects, forgetting his role in the investigation."
2024-02-19 News1