Up to Life Imprisonment in Store for Perpetrators of Crypto Crimes, According to New Rules From Korea Government

Breaking crypto laws in South Korea could soon come with a steep punishment.

The country’s new “Virtual Asset User Protection Act,” which is primed to come into effect in July, prohibits crypto market manipulation, certain types of trading and the use of undisclosed important information regarding digital assets.

Violating those regulations and earning an illegal profit of more than five billion won (roughly $3.76 million) could result in a sentence of life imprisonment, according to South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC). The government can also assess a fine that’s equivalent to three to five times the amount of unjust enrichment earned from the violation.

The law also stipulates that the FSC has the right to supervise and sanction crypto businesses. A draft of the regulations stated that crypto business operators like exchanges should store at least 80% of the value of their users’ crypto assets in cold storage, away from the internet.

Lee Bok-hyun, head of South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), announced earlier this month that he plans to travel to the US in the second quarter of the year to talk to Gary Gensler, Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), about the impact of the SEC’s crypto policies on the world, according to a report from The Korea Economic Daily.

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