Approximately 2.7 trillion won ($2.3 billion) has been lost as a result of various cryptocurrency crimes over the past two years, according to data from the South Korean Justice Department.
On Sunday, the agency released its own statistics covering the period from July 2017 to June 2019, including such types of crime as fraudulent schemes and financial pyramids, misappropriation of funds and unauthorized transactions.
According to the Ministry, 420 people were convicted of crimes related to cryptocurrency within two years, 132 of whom were placed in custody.
Last month, South Korea's Justice Minister Pak Sangky issued an order to increase the prosecution of criminals in the field of cryptocurrencies and strengthen measures to recover misappropriated funds.
As noted by The Korea Herald, in addition to the break-ins to which local cryptocurrency trading platforms have been exposed repeatedly, the reason for such large losses lies in the opaque nature of cryptocurrency trading. To solve this problem, South Korean legislators in January introduced a requirement to identify users of stock exchanges by means of bank accounts registered in their real names.
Democratic Party member Jae Yoon-kyeong suggested tightening cyber security measures for cryptocurrency platforms. The proposal is currently awaiting consideration by the National Assembly of South Korea.