The Second Round of the Coin Crisis Triggered by Kwon Young-se's Investment Controversy

Yeo "400 Transactions, Kwon Young-se Should Be Reported to Ethics Committee"
Ruling Party "Not Speculative Level in Terms of Amount"

The Advisory Committee on Ethics Review of the National Assembly's Special Ethics Committee reportedly judged that more than half of the 11 ruling and opposition party lawmakers who declared having experience in cryptocurrency trading have potential 'conflicts of interest,' marking a new phase in the controversy sparked by Representative Kim Nam-guk's cryptocurrency holdings.

In particular, the Democratic Party launched a fierce attack targeting Minister of Unification Kwon Young-se, a member of the People Power Party, who is known to have invested tens of millions of won in cryptocurrency trading. The Democratic Party also announced that it would conduct a fact-finding investigation into three of its own lawmakers who reported having cryptocurrency trading experience.

A total of 11 lawmakers voluntarily reported their status related to virtual assets. The advisory committee used criteria of either cryptocurrency trading amounts exceeding 10 million won or more than 100 transactions to determine potential conflicts of interest.

Minister of Unification Kwon Young-se is attending the Cabinet meeting held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 25th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

The advisory committee identified Minister Kwon Young-se and Representative Lee Yang-su from the People Power Party, and recently reinstated Representative Kim Hong-gul from the Democratic Party as having potential conflicts of interest. It was reported that Minister Kwon conducted over 400 cryptocurrency transactions in the past three years, and Representative Kim made over 100 transactions. Representative Lee is known to have invested about 30 million won but has since disposed of his holdings.

The Democratic Party is pressuring the People Power Party, demanding that Minister Kwon be referred to the Ethics Committee. At the Supreme Council meeting on the 24th, Democratic Party Supreme Council member Song Gap-seok pointed out, "Over the past three years, the cumulative purchase amount exceeded 1 billion won, with more than 400 transactions, and it was even revealed that virtual asset trading occurred during his tenure as minister."

He continued, "While inter-Korean relations deteriorated to a disastrous state during his tenure, the minister personally proceeded with virtual asset investments for profit without interruption. This is a shocking matter," adding, "A thorough investigation must be conducted to determine whether there were any disqualifications for violating the duties of integrity and diligence as a lawmaker and cabinet member."

In response, Minister Kwon stated to multiple media outlets that "I have never traded during work hours, invested about 30 million won, but actually incurred losses." The People Power Party is pushing back against the Democratic Party's offensive against Minister Kwon, calling it a 'diversion tactic.'

On the 24th, People Power Party Supreme Council member Kim Byung-min said in an interview with SBS Radio, "The important point is that if one invested in cryptocurrency during their legislative activities or while serving as a minister, they should be subject to criticism like Representative Kim Nam-guk. Although the number of transactions might be burdensome from Minister Kwon's perspective, in terms of the amount, I do not think it reaches the level of speculative investment."