Finance Minister Pledges Reform After Crypto Handling Failure in Korea
South Korea’s finance minister has announced urgent reforms to government handling of digital assets after failures revealed vulnerabilities in how public agencies manage confiscated crypto. Recent incidents include Seoul police losing access to 22 BTC due to improper custody and lack of adherence to security protocols, with subsequent investigations into possible bribery. Authorities now plan to review and overhaul digital asset management across institutions in collaboration with key financial regulators, aiming to strengthen security and prevent further mishandling. The pledged reforms follow rising public scrutiny and previous criticism of regulatory lapses in oversight, such as a recent flaw at the Bithumb crypto exchange. The government clarified it only possesses digital assets obtained via legal enforcement actions, not as regular holdings. Specific measures to improve safeguards have not yet been detailed.
