South Korean lawmakers question Bithumb CEO over false Bitcoin transfer incident

On Wednesday, South Korean lawmakers questioned Bithumb CEO Lee Jae-won about a $4 billion Bitcoin transfer error caused by human error. The incident occurred during a promotional event last week, where an employee mistakenly processed customer payments in Bitcoin instead of Korean won, resulting in the creation of false Bitcoins in the market. Democratic Party lawmaker Min Byeong-deok stated that Bithumb gifted Bitcoins that the company did not own, which constitutes naked short selling.

Currently, the Financial Supervisory Service has launched an investigation into the compliance systems and risk management of the country's second-largest digital asset platform. Financial Services Commission Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-young stated that the government believes this incident has exposed risks related to virtual assets and vulnerabilities in internal control systems, and will seek institutional reforms through an emergency response team, including inspections of all exchanges.