🌎 Woori Bank Employee Arrested for $15M Crypto Embezzlement

A Woori Bank employee has been arrested for allegedly embezzling ₩18 billion (approximately $15 million USD) through the manipulation of loan documents and using the stolen funds to invest in cryptocurrencies.

According to local reports, the employee, who managed corporate loans at a Woori Bank branch in Gimhae, South Korea, is accused of falsifying loan documents 35 times over a 10-month period from July 2023 to May this year. The fraudulent loans were reportedly taken out in the names of 17 customers, including both individuals and companies.

Investigation Details

The investigation highlighted that the fraudulent activities were enabled by inadequate bank management and supervision. This included staff handling urgent loan approvals without the presence of the authorized approver and headquarters sending loan funds directly to branches instead of the borrower’s account.

Prosecutors have frozen assets worth about $3.2 million, including deposits in crypto exchanges, banks, and loan firms, through seizure and preservation measures.

Regulatory Response

South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service is working on a system to monitor unusual crypto trading activity, aiming to enhance transparency and oversight in the country’s crypto market. The agency has urged domestic trading platforms to share internal data with the system to ensure compliance with new legislation that takes effect on July 19.