South Korean authorities have sold confiscated Bitcoin (BTC) that was seized from criminal activity in 2017. The value of the coins in question are currently worth $10.5 more, in comparison to the time of seizure. The funds are said to be allocated the countries national treasury. According to a source from the Suwon District Prosecutors Office, the series of events is the first time the Bitcoins have moved wallets since being placed in cold storage in 2017.
The Bitcoin was worth approximately $238,000 at the time of confiscation, however, as stated earlier they recently sold for a total of $10.8m, demonstrating a 4,400% rise in four years and a gain of $10.5 million. Based on that figure, we can assume that Bitcoin was valued at around $1,300 in April 2017.
South Korean Authorities held the coins in cold storage since the laws and legislation pertaining to cryptoasset trading were still ambiguous at the time. For the first time, the South Korean government implemented broad regulations regarding cryptoassets in late March, raising pressure on exchanges, brokerages and digital asset service providers to mandate real-name trading accounts and disclosure of activities to the South Korean Financial intelligence unit.
South Korea’s objective to monitor and control activity around cryptocurrency transaction is driven by their increasing understanding of the potential exploitation by tax evaders and money laundering. New legislation is set to come into effect from January 2022, imposing a 20% capital gains tax of profits generated from cryptocurrency trading.
With cryptocurrency investments becoming more worldwide the amount of people investing in cryptocurrency had risen by 25% in the last year, resulting in an 800% increase in total traded value, According to South Korea’s National Tax Service.
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