Do Kwon transferred over 10,000 bitcoins to Swiss bank account

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

Finance

Mon, October 2, 2023 | 20:28

Cryptocurrency

Do Kwon transferred over 10,000 bitcoins to Swiss bank account

Posted : 2023-02-19 16:10

Updated : 2023-02-20 16:14

Do Kwon speaks during an interview with crypto media outlet Coinage at his office in Singapore, Aug. 16. Screenshot from Coinage's YouTube channel

By Lee Min-hyung

Do Kwon reportedly transferred more than 10,000 bitcoins to a Swiss bank account after the abrupt collapse of his once-promising Terra-Luna ecosystem, for which a U.S. watchdog accused him and his firm of misleading investors by plotting the apparent crypto fraud.

According to overseas reports, Kwon is known to have sent the bitcoins ― amounting to $240 million (312 billion won) ― to an un-hosted wallet used for custody of cryptocurrencies. The founder of the company ― which developed the controversial stablecoin Terra and its sister token Luna ― is also accused of cashing out more than $100 million of bitcoins via the undisclosed Swiss bank account since last June, shortly after the Terra-Luna ecosystem collapsed.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Kwon and Terraform Labs for allegedly plotting the crypto scam ― leading investors to lose billions of dollars. The authority said Kwon repeatedly misled investors and his fraud incurred at least $40 billion in losses from the market.

But Kwon's whereabouts still remain unknown. Earlier, he made some appearances via online channels, underlining that he was "not on the run" and that he would comply with investigations, which turned out to be false. Kwon is known to be in Serbia for now, after leaving Singapore last year.

Korean prosecutors and investigators also went to the European country to arrest him. They met with Serbian investigative officials and called for a joint investigation to seize Kwon. In September, the Korean government issued an arrest warrant for Kwon on charges of violating the local Capital Markets Act.

Last year, Interpol issued a red notice for him, urging investigative agencies here and abroad to cooperate in his capture.

The Terraform Labs founder is expected to face multiple charges here as well. He is suspected of issuing the ill-designed cryptocurrency without notifying investors of its risks.

Luna attracted attention from global crypto investors before its sudden collapse last May. The cryptocurrency was once one of the world's seven largest in market capitalization. But with the botched stablecoin Terra falling below its intended $1 peg in May, the value of the sister token also plummeted by more than 90 percent in less than a week.

Terraform Labs has since launched a rebranded Terra ecosystem, as part of efforts to make up for investors' losses, but it ended up losing confidence from the market and investors.

mhlee@koreatimes.co.kr