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South Korea’s Leading Crypto Exchanges Aid Police in Hunting "Nth Rooms" Blackmail Porn Members

The four primary crypto exchanges in South Korea, namely Coinone, Korbit, Bithumb, and Upbit, have reportedly offered to help police investigate the sexual exploitation of underage girls in the “Nth Rooms” scandal that has sparked a national outcry.

Crypto exchanges table vital information

The sexual exploitation of underage school-going girls in South Korea has been happening for years in the “Nth Rooms” incident. Notably, they would be filmed undertaking violent self-harm and sexual acts, and the videos taken were made available via Telegram chat rooms after members made crypto payments.

It is reported that at least 10,000 people utilized these chatrooms after paying fees ranging from $200 to $1,200.

Following thorough investigations by the South Korean police, dozens of victims have been established as the videos usually presented the girls’ addresses and names. Currently, the police have identified 74 people, including 16 underage girls who were exploited.

Crypto exchanges seek to reveal crucial information about this scandal that has left people across the globe mouth agape because of the inhumanity rendered to underage girls. It is alleged that among the 10,000 members in the “Nth Rooms” were famous startup company CEOs, sports stars, popular artists, and professors.

The ringleader of the blackmails and chat rooms was revealed as 24-year-old Cho Ju-bin after at least 5 million South Koreans signed petitions to have him named.

Crypto exchanges heed the call

Following requests by the South Korean police for assistance, the four leading crypto exchanges in this nation seek to comply with this appeal by offering crucial information that will be instrumental in unraveling the culprits in the “Nth Rooms” scandal.

Earlier this month, the country’s national assembly amended the Act on Reporting and Use of Specific Financial Information, and this officiated the legalization of cryptocurrency trading and holding.

Once implemented, this law will be instrumental in averting crimes, such as the “Nth Rooms” scandal and money laundering given that crypto businesses, such as exchanges, wallet companies, and trusts, will be required to have a real-name verification partnership with an approved local bank. As a result, a verified person will be assigned a single bank account where he/she can deposit and withdraw fiat currency to and from an exchange.

Image via Shutterstock

South Korea Top Four Crypto Exchanges Launch Joint Venture To Abide By AML Regulations

Four major crypto exchanges in South Korea have joined hands to establish a joint venture to fight against money laundering. The heads of Bithumb, Korbit, Coinone, and Upbit signed a memorandum to form a system, which will enable them to adhere to the travel rule.

Complying with the travel rule

The travel rule is a global standard imposed by the Financial Action Task Force, an intergovernmental anti-money laundering watchdog, on virtual asset service providers like digital wallet providers and crypto exchanges.

As per the announcement:

“The rule requires virtual asset service providers to share the identities of users involved in any virtual asset transfers over 1 million won ($884).”

The regulation is expected to work like a SWIFT code, which is widely used as the industry standard in traditional financial institutions.

This rule is outlined in South Korea’s cryptocurrency law known as the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction information.

The joint venture is intended to cut costs

In a joint statement, the four companies noted:

“Instead of developing their own systems, the companies decided to co-develop a system that can be used industrywide.”

South Korea has been a notable player in the crypto space.

According to a recent study by Alba Heaven, an information provider, 23.6% of South Korean college students were investing in cryptocurrencies out of 1,750 people.

The survey noted that these students were inclined to invest in this territory based on the global crypto craze experience.

The respondents also cited high investment returns, low barriers to entry, and an opportunity to overcome class hierarchy as other reasons they step into crypto investment.

On the other hand, the South Korean administration announced last month that it was not relenting on its quest to levy a 20% income tax on capital gains from crypto transactions in 2022, despite growing investor concerns for the taxation plan to be delayed.

S. Korean Exchanges to be Held Accountable for LUNA Crash

The collapse of the Terra ecosystem including the protocol’s two flagship digital currencies, LUNA and UST may have more aftermaths than earlier imagined.

According to the latest reports from local media platform Newspim, the top cryptocurrency exchanges are now likely to be held accountable for failing to implement measures to protect investors from the crash.

In just about a week, UST depegged widely from the expected $1 price while the LUNA coin lost more than 99.99% of its value, charting the course of history as the worst collapse of a major cryptocurrency in recent times.

South Korean regulators and lawmakers are notably looking for who to hold accountable for this unfortunate event and exchanges including Bithumb, Upbit, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax are the best culprits. With a meeting scheduled for Tuesday, May 24th, a number of government officials, crypto industry giants, and members of the legislative arm will be present to assess the customer protection measures instituted before the crash by the trading platforms.

While it is not clear the exact yardstick and the modalities the inquiries will take, the latest reports confirm earlier stories that show the government has resorted to intensive scrutiny for digital assets trading platforms operating in the country.

With the collapse of the Terra protocol, regulators have levied founder and CEO Do Kwon with tax and fraud charges. Rather than brood over the ongoing mishaps, Kwon is reportedly in search of a functional and acceptable solution that can get the LUNA community back on its feet.

Nonetheless, expectations remain high as the entire ecosystem awaits the next course of action from the Korean watchdogs who have been absolutely concerned about the volatility of the industry and have dealt with exchanges with iron hands prior to this time.

With everyone anticipating a purported forking of the Terra network, investors who stacked LUNA after the price slumped will be carted off with gains as LUNA opened the week with gains as reported by Blockchain.News.