South Korea’s digital currency regulation sparked public outrage, and the media made official reports into NFTs to “ridicule” them

On April 22, Eun Sung-soo, chairman of the Financial Services Commission of South Korea, said at a plenary meeting of the National Assembly’s political affairs committee that the South Korean government is unable to protect cryptocurrency investors, and implied that “when young people go astray, the elders need to step in and correct them in time.”

Eun Sung-soo, Chairman of the Financial Services Commission of South Korea

Chairman Yin Chengxiu has been negative about the issue of protecting virtual asset investors during the meeting. "In the stock market or capital market, we clearly want to protect investors, but can virtual currency traders be called investors? Do people who invest in famous paintings also need protection? The government cannot be held responsible for losses incurred during personal investment."

The chairman said that the relevant departments of the South Korean government are currently accepting corporate registration applications in accordance with the Specific Financial Law, but so far no company has carried out this work in accordance with the regulations. If nearly 200 cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea do not apply for approval before September 24, they are likely to face forced closure. According to CoinDesk, there are currently only four major exchanges in South Korea (Bithumb, Coinone, Upbit, Korbit) that have established cooperative relationships with local banks. Industry insiders also predicted that these four exchanges may be the only ones that can survive under this regulatory policy.

In addition, the Financial Services Commission plans to impose a 20% transaction tax on virtual asset traders starting in 2022, based on the revised version of the Specific Financial Act. In response, Yin Chengxiu emphasized that "where there is income, there is taxation." The sale of famous paintings and the transfer of real estate are subject to taxation, so it is natural to levy taxes on crypto investment practitioners.

In response to a question from People Power Party member Kang Min-guk about the government's "inaction" on the crypto market, Yin Chengxiu explained: "As the governor of the Bank of Korea said before, it is a virtual asset with no intrinsic value. The government has been worried that if virtual assets are formally institutionalized, it may set off a speculative boom again."

It is reported that after Eun Sung-su finished his speech, Kim Byung-wook, a member of the Democratic Party who was also present at the meeting, looked embarrassed. Kim Byung-wook said, “It is regrettable that the financial authorities understand the issue of investor protection from the perspective of protecting investment losses.

In fact, industry norms should be formulated to transparently manage token issuers. Although investment and speculation are ambiguous, it is inappropriate to not regard virtual asset transactions as investment behavior. "In addition, "I agree that when the market is overheated, the government reminds investors to be cautious in trading and prevent investors from losing their assets. But when the people are engaged in economic activities, shouting 'We prohibit all such behavior'... It can be said that this is a great violation of the mission of the Financial Services Commission."

According to local reports, Yin Chengxiu's remarks immediately caused quite a stir. Investors complained, "Does it mean that people who invest in virtual assets are on the wrong path?" "Not only can they not serve the people, but they also treat the people as children and make fun of them?"

In response to the above-mentioned official's remarks, a Korean cryptocurrency practitioner told reporters: "From a certain perspective, I feel sorry for their ignorance of the market. Although there may be hidden dangers in the virtual currency investment market, there are currently many investment companies, and overseas countries are also trying to institutionalize and legalize cryptocurrencies. The South Korean government's move can only highlight its irresponsible side."

People related to the exchange who are communicating with banks about the issuance of real-name accounts are optimistic about the future direction. "We will not be shaken by the chairman's remarks. I think it is better to do what we can to face it calmly than to speculate. Although the chairman's remarks cannot be said to have no impact, the above has formulated a declaration guide. As long as we do the declaration work step by step, I believe they will give a fair explanation."

The day after Chairman Yin Chengxiu’s official speech, South Korea’s local blockchain media BLOCKMEDIA officially announced that the relevant reports of Chairman Yin’s speech would be NFT-ized, named "Yin Chengxiu coin", and successfully listed on the NFT token exchange OpenSea, with a selling price equivalent to one Ethereum (2.7 million won).

A person from BLOCKMEDIA said, “This move is to record this ironic history forever, and the proceeds will be used for adult investment education projects. (Eun Sung-soo) Such closed-minded thinking is the stumbling block for the development of digital assets in our country. I hope that 'Eun Sung-soo coin' can become a historical lesson worthy of reference for the Korean digital asset market and policy authorities.”