The South Korea government has revealed that it will clamp down on the illegal and unfair trading of cryptocurrencies. This action is taken by the government in response to the petition bearing 280,000 signatures, that was sent to the Blue House and demanded action against the illegal trading acts.    

South Korea to Take Firm Action against Illegal Crypto Trading

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Over the last few months, South Korea has become a cryptocurrency trading hub. Subsequently, it led the regulators to come with suggestions to crackdown on virtual currency.

As stated by the Hong Nam-ki, the minister of the office for government policy coordination:

“The Government’s basic rule is to prevent any illegal acts or uncertainties regarding cryptocurrency trade, while eagerly nurturing blockchain technology.”

South Korea had already got into action and imposed restrictions on cryptocurrency. However, in January, after the finance minister said that the government might shut down the cryptocurrency exchanges, people filed a petition against the minister and the suggested regulation.

Now, in response to the petition with 280,000 signatures that was sent to the presidential Blue House, South Korean government has said that it will take a firm action against the unfair and illegal acts regarding cryptocurrency trading.

The Petition basically demands that the government never impose any unreasonable regulations on the trading of virtual currency.

Asia going tough on Cryptocurrencies

On January 30, the regulators banned the use of anonymous bank accounts to trade the virtual currency. However, they didn’t intend to shut down the domestic crypto exchanges.

Hong also added that the country is planning to announce measures to develop the blockchain industry, within the first half of this year itself.

As per Hong, the government will review this industry thoroughly within the global norms and further added that:

“But, the government is still divided with many opinions ranging from an outright ban on cryptocurrency trading to bringing the institutions that handle the currency into the system.”

Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin are already facing a crackdown in other Asian countries like China and India to tighten the regulations and protect the consumer interest.

Since the start of this year, Bitcoin has suffered a massive crash, about 55 percent from its December price value and it has been believed that this crash has been partially the result of the countries introducing crypto regulations.

The result of South Korea’s decision to work firmly against illegal cryptocurrency trading can already be seen on the price of the bitcoin. There has been a slight dip in its prices.

However, South Korea’s move against the illegal trading is not negative as it has been in response to its citizens’ petition and additionally, it will protect the interests of consumers.

What are your views on South Korea’s action on the petition to crack down on illegal trading? Let us know your thoughts below in our comments section!

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Casper Brown

I am an associate content producer for the news section of Coingape. I have previously worked as a freelancer for numerous sites and have covered a dynamic range of topics from sports, finance to economics and politics.