According to the Korea Times, Thursday’s report by the Korea Times stated that the South Korean government has transferred responsibility for the cryptocurrency terra (LUNA), and algorithmic stablecoin terrausd(UST) crashes onto crypto exchanges.
Tuesday’s emergency meeting was held by the Korean National Assembly and government with heads of crypto exchanges in the country to discuss ways to prevent the recurrence and implosion of the LUNA/UST. The publication revealed that lawmakers and financial officials supported the imposition tougher regulations for crypto exchanges.
The Korean government has criticised crypto exchanges for not responding quickly to the collapse of the two currencies. Several of the top Korean crypto exchanges didn’t delist LUNA until just two weeks after the collapse. Some critics claimed that they deliberately delayed delisting LUNA to collect more commissions.
Rep. Yoon Changhyun, a representative of the ruling People Power Party, raised concerns about crypto exchanges’ ambiguous listing standards and delisting standards. He stressed:
The exchanges don’t have a unified listing standard and they do not hold negotiations on the issue.
Lee Sirgoo (CEO of Dunamu), who operates Upbit, the country’s most popular exchange, responded to lawmakers’ discussions about imposing a uniform listing standard for all domestic cryptocurrency exchanges. He stated that crypto assets can be sent overseas and that many crypto investors already use non-Korean exchanges.
Rep. Rep. He also added:
Exchanges that violate the rules of the market should be held accountable to ensure that it functions smoothly and without problems.
Kim So-young, Vice-Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, the country’s top financial regulator said that they would establish close ties with the Ministry of Justice and the prosecution in order to monitor illegal acts in the sector and protect investors’ rights.
A representative from one of the local cryptocurrency exchanges stated that “Exchanges can easily be a target for criticism at this time of time when there is no specific regulatory guideline.” He said:
While we understand the purpose of this meeting, the first step is to summon Do Kwon (co-founder of the company) as soon as possible.
In the near future, the National Assembly will hold a hearing on the LUNA case. The publication said that Do Kwon will not be attending, as his whereabouts remain unknown.
