South Korean prosecutors have sold a Bitcoin haul they confiscated from a criminal in 2017. The stash is now worth $10.5 million more than it was at the time of the arrest. The cash has reportedly been deposited in the coffers of the country’s national treasury. This is the first time South Korean authorities have sold confiscated Bitcoin and the first time the coins in question have moved since being put into cold storage in 2017. At the time of writing, BTC is changing hands at just below $60,000. 

South Korean government sold confiscated bitcoins for a sum of $10.8 million.

Originally worth $238,000 at the time of the confiscation, the coins were recently sold for a sum of $10.8 million, marking a 4,400% increase in value in four years. Based on that percentage growth, we can assume that Bitcoin was priced at around $1,300 when the arrest was made, close to April 2017. With no specific cryptocurrency laws or regulations in place at the time, authorities left the coins in cold storage for four years. 

South Korea focuses on crypto regulations.

Earlier this month, the South Korean government enacted widespread cryptocurrency-related laws for the first time, putting more pressure on exchanges and crypto asset service providers to use real-name trading accounts and to report their activities to Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit. Prosecutors reportedly sold the coins as soon as the laws were put into place on March 25. South Korea’s determination to regulate the cryptocurrency industry stems from revelations regarding crypto’s use by tax evaders and the evergreen concerns surrounding money-laundering. The government has also announced that beginning next year, new laws will come into force that levy a 20% capital gains tax on profits made from cryptocurrency trading.