South Korean authorities have concluded two significant cryptocurrency-related cases, involving the liquidation of seized Bitcoin and the clearance of a key figure in a massive fraud scandal. The Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office has sold 320.8 Bitcoin (BTC) for approximately 31.6 billion won ($21.5 million) and transferred the proceeds to the national treasury. The sale was conducted in batches over 11 days, from February 24 to March 6, 2026.
The Bitcoin had been seized from an illegal international gambling platform that operated from 2018 to 2021. In a notable custody failure, prosecutors lost the assets in August 2025 after officials fell for a phishing attack. The loss was discovered in December 2025, but the hacker returned the 320.8 BTC in February 2026, enabling the subsequent sale. The phishing investigation remains open, with the hacker still at large.
Separately, the Seoul Suseo Police Station has definitively cleared lawyer Lee Jong-geun, the husband of Rebuilding Korea Party lawmaker Park Eun-jeong, of professional misconduct allegations. The investigation, referred by the Korean Bar Association's Ethics Council in November 2024, examined whether Lee's representation of a figure in the V Global coin fraud case violated the Attorney-at-Law Act. The police closed the preliminary investigation on February 21, 2026, finding insufficient evidence for charges.
The V Global case itself was a landmark Ponzi scheme that defrauded roughly 50,000 investors of 2.8 trillion won (~$2.03 billion) by promising 300% returns on its 'V-Cash' coin. The scandal triggered nationwide outrage and accelerated stricter cryptocurrency regulations in South Korea, including enhanced KYC/AML requirements, mandatory exchange licensing, and harsher penalties for fraud.
