Kim Nam-kuk, a member of South Korea’s National Assembly, is being investigated for trading nearly $4.5 million worth of crypto assets before the Financial Action Task Force’s Travel Rule was enforced, according to a report from The Korea Times on May 8th. The Korea Financial Intelligence Unit is conducting the investigation, and the lawmaker has reportedly denied cashing out but transferring the assets to another exchange, arguing that he was not required to report such activity.
As a member of South Korea’s National Assembly, Kim had some authority in handling laws related to digital assets, and he reportedly backed legislation proposing a 20% tax on crypto gains to be deferred from 2023 to 2025. Hong Joon-pyo, mayor of the city of Daegu, called Kim’s action a “serious moral hazard” and stated that it could be seen as an abuse of his legislative power to protect his private assets.
