 ▲ Emergency inquiry by the National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee on the ‘Bitcoin mistaken payment’. |
The National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee has put Bithumb’s internal controls and governance structure under direct scrutiny following the “Bitcoin mistaken payment” incident. Lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties questioned management responsibility and loopholes in the supervisory system, emphasizing the need to supplement the system through the enactment of the Digital Asset Basic Act.
At the emergency inquiry held on the 11th, People Power Party lawmaker Kang Min-kuk criticized what he described as “management bordering on frenzy and confusion,” raising questions about the influence of external affairs operations. Addressing Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Governor Lee Chan-jin, Kang pointed to the employment of former FSS officials at Bithumb and raised concerns about personal connections with the supervisory authority. He noted that former Bithumb Holdings CEO Lee Sang-joon and former compliance officer Choi Hee-kyung also came from the FSS’s Capital Market Investigation Bureau, warning of potential damage to supervisory credibility.
Democratic Party lawmaker Park Sang-hyuk also criticized the company’s staffing structure. Park pointed out that while 15 employees are assigned to external affairs, only 20 handle tasks related to the mistaken payment, arguing that external response functions appear to be emphasized over internal control capabilities. Rep. Shin Jang-sik of the Rebuilding Korea Party added that external affairs activities repeatedly referenced overseas exchanges to avoid regulation, urging the company to accept regulations at the same level as financial institutions as a genuine apology.
Both parties agreed that financial authorities should establish institutional control mechanisms through the Digital Asset Basic Act (the second-phase virtual asset bill) scheduled for legislation this year. However, they distanced themselves from the authorities’ proposal to limit major shareholders’ stakes in exchanges to 15–20 percent, expressing concern that a uniform cap on ownership could create additional market side effects.
People Power Party lawmaker Kim Sang-hoon warned that shares released due to ownership caps could be absorbed by global firms such as Binance or Coinbase. Democratic Party lawmaker Heo Young also stressed that strengthening internal controls and addressing governance issues should be approached separately. While there was consensus on the need for tighter regulation, lawmakers urged caution against blanket restrictions on ownership structures.
Attending the meeting were FSS Governor Lee Chan-jin, Financial Services Commission Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-young, Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) Director of System Operation Planning Ha Joo-sik, and Bithumb CEO Lee Jae-won. The committee also attempted to summon former Bithumb Holdings Chairman Lee Jung-hoon, known as the exchange’s beneficial owner, but the effort fell through. Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Kang-il criticized the situation, saying that the individual making the most important decisions should appear before the public to explain responsibility, emphasizing that the core of the incident extends beyond a simple system error to issues of governance and accountability.
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