Terra’s Do Kwon Reportedly Founded Crypto Firm In Serbia, S. Korea Seeks Extradition

Terra founder Do Kwon established a crypto entity in Serbia and South Korea, the U.S. and Singapore are seeking his extradition.
By Varinder Singh
Terra's Do Kwon Reportedly Founded Crypto Firm In Serbia, S. Korea Seeks Extradition

Do Kwon, co-founder of Terraform Labs, was detained at an airport in Podgorica, Montenegro on Thursday, South Korean prosecutors and Interpol have now confirmed his identity. South Korea, the U.S., and Singapore seek extradition of Do Kwon.

The Serbian High-Tech Criminal Prosecutor’s Office and the U.S. Federal Prosecutor’s Office disclosed that Do Kwon and former Chai Corp CEO Han Chang-joon established a crypto business in Serbia, reported South Korea’s new media Digital Asset on March 24.

In February, a joint team from Seoul Southern District Prosecutor’s Office visited Serbia after the Serbian Ministry of Justice and prosecutors shared details about Do Kwon with the South Korean prosecutors. While crypto-friendly Serbia doesn’t have an extradition treaty with South Korea, the authorities tried to help South Korean prosecutors. Prosecutors are reportedly confirming whether Do Kwon starting a crypto business in Serbia or a paper company for money laundering.

In December, CoinGape Media reported that Do Kwon exchanged Bitcoin worth $190K from the Luna Foundation Guard for cash in Serbia. The on-chain data analysis also revealed a transfer of $10,000.

In February, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit disclosed that Do Kwon and his company secretly processed over 10,000 BTC out of the company and converted some tokens into cash via a Swiss bank. The SEC accused Terraform Labs and its co-founder of committing a $40 billion securities fraud involving LUNA and Terra’s algorithmic stablecoin TerraUSD (UST).

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South Korea Seeks Extradition of Do Kwon

According to South Korea’s news agency Yonhap, the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office started the process of extradition of Do Kwon from Montenegro. Singapore is reportedly seeking the extradition of Do Kwon too as his company TFL was established in Singapore.

Meanwhile, the US Dept. of Justice also seeks Do Kwon’s extradition to the US. In fact, the DOJ’s US Attorney SDNY filed an indictment in the Southern District Court of New York with eight counts of charges. It includes conspiracy to defraud, commodities fraud, securities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to engage in market manipulation.

Also Read: Bitcoin and Crypto Back on Upward Trajectory Despite SEC’s Crypto Caution

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Varinder Singh
Varinder has over 10 years of experience and is known as a seasoned leader for his involvement in the fintech sector. With over 5 years dedicated to blockchain, crypto, and Web3 developments, he has experienced two Bitcoin halving events making him key opinion leader in the space. At CoinGape Media, Varinder leads the editorial decisions, spearheading the news team to cover latest updates, markets trends and developments within the crypto industry. The company was recognized as Best Crypto Media Company 2024 for high impact and quality reporting. Being a Master of Technology degree holder, analytics thinker, technology enthusiast, Varinder has shared his knowledge of disruptive technologies in over 5000+ news, articles, and papers.
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