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| Rep. Kim Nam-kuk of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea / Yonhap |
By Lee Min-hyung
Rep. Kim Nam-kuk of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) is being criticized for suspicious crypto trading worth 6 billion won ($4.54 million).
Kim is suspected of cashing out his crypto assets shortly before March 2022 when Korea introduced the crypto travel rule, mandating real-name crypto transactions. Kim denied the suspicions, claiming that most of his crypto assets were not cashed out, but instead transferred to another exchange.
The exchange then reported the suspicious transaction to the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit, which reported the case to the prosecution. Investigators are stilling looking into the incident.
The public criticism is directed at Kim's ambivalence, as he has claimed to be a poor politician who stands with the socially vulnerable.
He said he had not reported his crypto assets, as they were not subject to the disclosure obligation under the current public service ethics act.
The ruling People Power Party, however, stepped up criticism of Kim for his suspicious crypto trading.
"The public is shocked by his ambivalent attitude and attempts to gain sympathy by highlighting his cheap shoes, even though he held crypto assets worth 6 billion won," PPP spokesman Rep. Yoo Sang-bum said.
Kim is also under fire for proposing a bill in 2021 along with a group of other lawmakers from the opposition camp on delaying the taxation of crypto gains.
Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo also urged Kim to step down from his post.
"This is a serious moral hazard," he said. "He appeared to have had a get-rich-quick scheme with crypto trading. He should have left his job as a lawmaker and focused on speculative trading instead. On top of that, he stood at the forefront of delaying crypto taxation, which can be seen as an abuse of his legislative power for the protection of his private assets."
But Kim denied most of the suspicions.
"I did not borrow and receive money from anyone at all (for the crypto trading)," Kim said. "I sold some of my stocks to use for the initial crypto investment. I also made transactions only through real-name accounts and I can transparently share all of the transaction records."
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