News linked to both this project and an event.
Odaily News: South Korean police recently raided cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb to investigate allegations that independent lawmaker Kim Byung-gi used his influence to secure a job for his son. According to reports, Kim’s son joined Bithumb in January 2025 and worked there for about six months. Police are investigating whether external pressure or preferential treatment was involved in the hiring process. Additionally, the case has also implicated Dunamu, the operator of South Korea’s largest crypto exchange Upbit, with the investigation scope expanding from simple hiring issues to potential abuse of power and conflicts of interest.Investigators noted that during his tenure on the National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee, Kim Byung-gi raised multiple inquiries against Dunamu during committee meetings, sparking external speculation that he may have been seeking benefits for the company where his son was employed.It is understood that police have previously questioned executives from several cryptocurrency firms and have conducted search and seizure operations at Bithumb’s headquarters and Bithumb Financial Tower. Kim Byung-gi himself is under investigation on 13 charges, including allegations related to job placements, bribery for nominations, and requests concerning university transfers. He has stated that he believes he will ultimately be able to prove his innocence.Notably, Bithumb has been facing sustained regulatory pressure recently. In March this year, South Korea’s financial regulator fined Bithumb approximately $24.5 million for violations related to KYC (Know Your Customer) and AML (Anti-Money Laundering) regulations, and issued a six-month partial business suspension order. However, the Seoul court temporarily suspended the penalty in late April, and the relevant legal proceedings are still ongoing. (Cointelegraph)
According to CriptoNoticias, Costa Rica’s Legislative Assembly unanimously approved, during its second debate on May 25, an amendment to Law No. 7786, clarifying anti-money laundering (AML) obligations for virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and requiring such entities to register with the General Superintendency of Financial Entities (Sugef).
Odaily News: Costa Rica's Legislative Assembly has unanimously approved amendments to Law No. 7786, establishing specific obligations for virtual asset service providers regarding anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and counter-proliferation financing of weapons of mass destruction. The new law requires virtual asset service providers to register with the Financial Superintendence General and fulfill obligations including customer identification, due diligence, transaction record keeping, and reporting of suspicious transactions. Penalties for violations range from 5% to 50% of the transaction amount, or between $1,800 and $90,000. The law will take effect three months after its publication.
According to Cointelegraph, a petition in South Korea calling for the abolition of the 22% tax on cryptocurrency investment gains has surpassed the 50,000-signature threshold, triggering the mandatory review mechanism of the National Assembly’s Committee on Strategy and Finance. The petition currently has over 52,000 signatures. This tax policy is scheduled to take effect in January 2027. Petitioners argue that taxing crypto assets is significantly heavier than taxation applied to other asset classes, which will increase investors’ burdens, restrict upward mobility—especially for younger demographics—and potentially lead to industry contraction and capital and talent flight. Meanwhile, South Korea’s cryptocurrency market continues to shrink: total crypto asset holdings have declined from approximately 121.8 trillion KRW (about $83.3 billion) in January 2025 to roughly 60.6 trillion KRW (about $41.4 billion) in February 2026. Daily trading volume across the country’s top five exchanges has also plummeted—from $11.6 billion in December 2024 to $3 billion.
the South Korean government plans to inject some of the excess tax revenue from the semiconductor industry boom in cash into a new sovereign wealth fund set to launch in the second half of this year. The fund originally planned to raise 20 trillion won through in-kind contributions, such as government-held shares in state-owned enterprises, but has now decided to add several trillion won in cash, expanding its seed capital to nearly 30 trillion won (approximately $20 billion).The fund is a growth-oriented fund aimed at making medium to long-term investments in promising companies at the growth stage within South Korea's strategic industries. The relevant establishment bill is expected to be submitted to the National Assembly in June, with the funds included in the 2027 budget proposal.
According to Money Today, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of Korea announced that it will release detailed regulations and guidelines for tokenized securities in July 2026. The proposed framework would permit issuing fractional investment securities backed by a bundle of similar underlying assets and explore raising trading limits on over-the-counter (OTC) exchanges. Regulators will also draw on international precedents to develop a roadmap for tokenizing standardized securities—including equities, bonds, and money market funds—and advance testing and enhancement of infrastructure such as on-chain settlement. Korea’s tokenized securities regime was approved by the National Assembly in January this year and is scheduled to take effect on February 4, 2027.
that, according to data submitted by the Bank of Korea to the National Assembly, the total value of crypto assets held by South Korean investors fell from 121.8 trillion won (approximately $83.3 billion) at the end of January 2025 to 60.6 trillion won (approximately $41.4 billion) at the end of February 2026, a decline of over 50% within a year. During the same period, the average daily trading volume on South Korea's top five exchanges—Upbit, Bithumb, Korbit, Coinone, and Gopax—dropped from $11.6 billion in December 2024 to $3 billion in February this year. The total Korean won deposits on these exchanges also decreased from 10.7 trillion won to 7.8 trillion won, reflecting that some funds are flowing into the South Korean stock market.However, stablecoin holdings have remained relatively resilient. Data shows that South Korean stablecoin holdings peaked at $597 million in December 2024 before falling to $41 million in February this year, a decline significantly smaller than that of the broader crypto market.Additionally, South Korean regulators plan to implement stricter anti-money laundering rules in August, which will automatically flag as suspicious any transactions involving overseas exchanges or private wallets exceeding 10 million won. The Digital Asset Exchange Alliance (DAXA) has warned that this measure could drive users toward offshore platforms such as Binance.Meanwhile, the South Korean Ministry of Economy and Finance recently confirmed for the first time that a 22% tax rate on crypto gains will officially take effect on January 1, 2027. (Cointelegraph)
According to The Block, South Korea’s National Assembly has passed an amendment to the Foreign Exchange Transaction Act, requiring enterprises engaged in cross-border inflows and outflows of crypto assets to register with the Minister of Economy and Finance to strengthen systematic oversight of cross-border crypto asset flows. The amendment introduces a new definition of “virtual asset transfer business,” covering activities involving the transfer of crypto assets between South Korea and overseas jurisdictions through buying, selling, or exchanging—such as those conducted by cryptocurrency exchanges and digital asset custodians. Separately, it is reported that South Korea’s Financial Services Commission plans to extend the Travel Rule to all crypto transactions; South Korea also intends to impose a 22% tax on crypto asset gains exceeding 2.5 million KRW starting January 2027.
According to ZDNet, the South Korean government plans to impose taxes on virtual assets starting in January next year, but faces opposition from the opposition party, increasing policy uncertainty. Moon Kyung-ho, head of the Income Tax Division at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, made the government’s first official statement on the matter during a National Assembly discussion, affirming that taxation on virtual assets will proceed as scheduled beginning January 1, next year, emphasizing that “income must be taxed.” Under the current amendment to the Income Tax Act, gains exceeding 2.5 million KRW from the transfer or lending of virtual assets are subject to a 22% tax rate. However, the opposition People Power Party argues that taxing only virtual assets—while abolishing the financial investment income tax—is unfair, and is advancing a bill to abolish the virtual asset income tax. This bill has already been submitted to the National Assembly’s Committee on Strategy and Finance and will be discussed by its Tax Subcommittee. Analysts believe that, ahead of next year’s local elections, the ruling party may join discussions on delaying or scrapping the tax to win support from younger voters.
According to Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, the Iranian delegation scheduled to hold talks with the United States that day comprised 71 members, including the core negotiation team, expert teams, media representatives, as well as protocol and security personnel. The Iranian delegation was led by Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly (Iranian Parliament). Other members included Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Central Bank Governor Abdolnasser Hemmati, and Secretary of the Defense Commission Ali Akbar Ahmadian. Also part of the delegation were Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani, Deputy Director for Foreign Policy at the Secretariat of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Bagheri Kani, Member of Parliament Seyyed Mahmoud Nabaviyan, International Affairs Advisor to the Parliament Speaker Abolfazl Amouei, and Strategic Advisor to the Parliament Speaker Mehdi Mohammadi. Given the high complexity and sensitivity of the negotiations, Iran deployed technical and expert committees in addition to its core negotiating personnel. Moreover, the U.S. delegation totaled 300 people, a significant portion of whom belonged to security, protective, and protocol teams. (Xinhua News Agency)
According to Cointelegraph, Denis Beau, First Deputy Governor of the Bank of France, stated at the EUROFI High-Level Seminar that the Bank of France is advocating for the European Union to strengthen payment restrictions under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) on non-euro stablecoins—particularly U.S. dollar–pegged stablecoins. Beau noted that existing regulatory measures may be insufficient to address the risks posed by widespread stablecoin adoption. Meanwhile, on April 7, the French National Assembly passed an anti-fraud bill that would require annual reporting of self-custodied crypto wallets with a value exceeding €5,000; however, the bill has not yet completed the legislative process.