South Korea’s finance authority said on Wednesday that anyone who commit cryptocurrency crimes might be sentenced to life in jail when new consumer protection laws go into force in July.
The Virtual Asset User Protection Act is a consumer protection framework that was introduced in December by the Financial Services Commission (FSC). Market manipulation, unlawful trading, and other infractions that, depending on their seriousness, could result in jail time or fines are covered by the regulations, which go into force on July 19.
“In the case of criminal punishment, a fixed-term imprisonment of more than one year or a fine equivalent to three to five times the amount of unjust enrichment is possible,” the FSC stated.
The announcement further stated that offenders may get life sentences if the proceeds of their crimes surpass 5 billion won ($3.8 million).
South Korea has been stepping up its regulation of the digital asset market, paying special attention to consumer safety. Thus far, approved plans require public people and companies to reveal their cryptocurrency holdings.