It has been revealed that Upbit, the No. 1 virtual asset exchange in Korea, has collected a whopping 4 trillion won in transaction fees since 2017.
The problem is that half of the coins traded on Upbit were delisted within three years.
Criticism is bound to arise for ignoring coin verification while immersed in the commission business.
This is the exclusive report by reporter Kim Woo-jun.
[기자]
After the enforcement of the ‘Specified Financial Information Act’, there are four exchanges where you can buy and sell virtual assets in won.
Among them, Upbit has the highest trading volume.
With a market share of 80%, the industry’s influence is strong.
[가상자산 거래소 관계자 : 업비트는 절대적인 위치에 있는 거죠. 경쟁 거래소들이 따라갈 수 없을 만큼의 위치에 있고.]
The amount earned from transaction fees is also huge.
In the 44 months since 2017, it has reached 4 trillion won.
It averages over 100 billion won per month.
Profits from trading ‘bad coins’ are also significant.
314 billion won, or 8% of the total.
The problem is Upbit’s verification function for coin listing.
A total of 298 coins were listed until last June.
Of these, 145, or 48%, were delisted.
The average transaction period is only 2 years and 6 months.
[상장폐지 코인 투자자 : 강제로 매도를 유도하면서, (업비트는) 수수료에 대한 이익을 취하고, 그리고 손해는 투자자들이 부담하고, 불공평하고, 화가 나는 부분입니다.]
There is no choice but to criticize that Upbit mass-produced insolvent coins by neglecting verification because it was blinded by the commission business, and that the damage was passed on to investors.
[민병덕 / 더불어민주당 의원 : 블록체인 발전을 고려하는 게 아니라 자신들의 수수료에만 관심 있는 게 아닌가. 그리고 피해자들의 손실은 나 몰라라 하는 거 아닌가. 정말 큰 문제라고 생각하고요.]
The National Assembly plans to call Upbit CEO Lee Seok-woo as a witness to the state audit and examine the reasons for not taking proper measures to protect investors.
This is YTN Kim Woo-jun.
[앵커]
Upbit is also being suspected of ‘listing’ by collecting back money in exchange for listing unverified coins.
A circumstance of exchanging ‘listing fees’ with a new coin company over the past two years has been caught.
Reporter Woo-Jun Kim continues to report.
[기자]
The exchange decides whether a coin is listed or not.
So, the ‘suspicion of listing fraud’ in which the exchange side abuses this powerful authority and receives money from a coin company on condition of listing has been constantly raised.
[코인 업체 관계자 : ‘슈퍼 갑’ 지위에 있으므로 가상자산 재단들은 상장 이슈에서는 거래소가 요구하는 사안을 들어줄 수밖에 없는 그런 입장인 거죠.]
Upbit, the No. 1 exchange in Korea, even posted a large-scale notice stating that it has never requested or received a ‘listing fee’.
[업비트 관계자 : ‘상장피’ 이야기가 계속 나왔었는데, 업비트는 대외적으로는 ‘상장피’를 안 받고 있다? (네 전혀 없습니다.)]
However, as a result of YTN coverage, it was revealed that Upbit received coins from the company after listing some coins.
This is the history of coin receipts from companies that Upbit has decided to list in the past two years.
A total of 67 companies provided coins worth from several million won to hundreds of millions of won.
This is a question of ‘listing blood’.
However, there are no regulations regarding the listing and abolition of virtual assets, so it is impossible to even check whether the transaction is behind the scenes.
[민형배 / 더불어민주당 의원 : 내용상으로 볼 때 ‘변칙적 상장피’로 보입니다. 결국, 제도가 없었기 때문인데요. 제도를 시급히 마련하고, 그래서 공정하고 투명하게 거래소 관리가 되도록 조처를 하겠습니다.]
In response, Upbit explained that it was true that they received the coin, but it was not the price of listing, saying that it was for marketing purposes to promote the transaction of the new coin.
[업비트 관계자 : 양자협의 하에 (마케팅을) 진행을 하는 경우가 있는 건데요. 그럴 경우에는 계약서를 쓰고 진행하고, 이벤트가 종료되면 잔여 수량은 돌려드려요.]
It is pointed out that, like the stock market that clearly stipulates the conditions for listing on the exchange, it is necessary to create consistent and transparent listing standards for coin exchanges.
This is YTN Kim Woo-jun.
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