SARAJEVO – Montenegrin Justice Minister Bojan Bozovic has ordered the extradition of Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, also wanted by South Korea, to the United States, the Justice Ministry said on Dec 27.
A South Korean national, Kwon is the former chief executive of South Korea-based Terraform Labs, the company behind the TerraUSD, a “stablecoin” designed to maintain a constant US$1 price, which collapsed in May 2022, roiling cryptocurrency markets.
He was arrested in March 2023 while attempting to leave Montenegro.
After the Supreme Court determined that all legal conditions were fulfilled to extradite Kwon, the Justice Ministry concluded that most legal criteria favoured the US request, so Mr Bozovic signed a decree to send him to the United States and denied such a request from South Korea, the ministry said in a statement.
Kwon has denied wrongdoing. He also faces related US criminal charges.
His lawyers said Mr Bozovic had declined to deliver his decision on their request, thus violating their client’s basic human rights, the right to defence and legal remedy, the Pobjeda newspaper reported.
Kwon and his company Terraform Labs were sued by the US Securities and Exchange Commission in February 2023 over the TerraUSD and Luna cryptocurrencies, which the authorities have said caused about US$40 billion (S$54 billion) of losses in crypto markets.
A stablecoin is a digital asset that aims to keep a stable price. Usually pegged to a currency, it is intended to be less volatile than other cryptocurrencies.
The SEC said Terraform and Kwon deceived investors about the stability of TerraUSD and how a popular South Korean mobile payment app used the Terraform blockchain to settle transactions. REUTERS
Join ST’s Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Source link : http://www.bing.com/news/apiclick.aspx?ref=FexRss&aid=&tid=6771093b129b4259863d9fd2e37d682f&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.straitstimes.com%2Fworld%2Feurope%2Fmontenegro-orders-extradition-of-terraform-labs-co-founder-do-kwon-to-us&c=7220790613353210072&mkt=en-us
Author :
Publish date : 2024-12-27 09:13:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
