South Korean Prosecutors Uncover Alleged $314 Million Criminal Proceeds Tied to Terraform Labs Co-Founders

According to a report by South Korean news publication KBS, Do Kwon, the co-founder of Terraform Labs, has converted a “large part” of his assets into bitcoin. Prosecutors in South Korea believe that Kwon’s purported bitcoin stash was transferred to an international exchange.

A report by KBS journalist Jieun Lee details that South Korean prosecutors have discovered 414.5 billion won ($314 million) in alleged criminal proceeds tied to employees of Terraform Labs. The report indicates that prosecutors estimate 91.4 billion won is associated with Do Kwon, the co-founder, and 154.1 billion won is purportedly linked to co-founder Shin Hyun-seong, also known as Daniel Shin.

Seven other Terraform Labs staff members are reportedly associated with an additional 169 billion won. The KBS journalist also reported that South Korean investigators suspect Kwon of selling “a large part of his property to bitcoin and transferring it to an overseas virtual asset exchange.” Furthermore, South Korean prosecutors have contacted the cryptocurrency exchange Binance and requested that the exchange “block the withdrawal of cryptocurrency owned by CEO Kwon.”

Three days ago, the Seoul Southern District Prosecutor’s Office’s financial and securities crime unit revealed that investigators had seized real estate worth 210 billion won from eight Terraform Labs team members, including Daniel Shin. However, none of the real estate properties are believed to belong to Kwon, and prosecutors have stated that the Terraform Labs CEO did not have any significant property in the country.

“We are still investigating the property ownership status of the suspects, and we plan to carry out collection preservation for the confirmed property in the future in order to recover the proceeds of crime and recover damages,” a spokesperson from the Seoul prosecutors office stated.

What do you think about the discovery of these alleged criminal proceeds and property seizures? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.