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Do Kwon requests dismissal of SEC charges following South Korea’s classification of LUNA as a non-security.
Court filings reveal that Do Kwon, the co-founder and CEO of Terraform Labs, has requested the dismissal of allegations brought against him by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
In the motion submitted on Friday, April 21, Kwon contended that the SEC’s assertions are unfounded, challenging the agency’s stance that tokens such as MIR, LUNA (LUNA), and UST qualify as securities.
Furthermore, Kwon’s legal team argued that the agency did not possess the appropriate jurisdiction to file charges against Kwon and Terraform Labs, as Terra’s tokens and initiatives were “targeted at the global market” and did not specifically focus on U.S. investors.
The South Korean district court has recently dismissed security violation allegations against Terraform Labs co-founder Hyun-seong Shin, ruling that LUNA is not classified as a security under Korea’s Capital Markets Act. This decision renders Kwon’s motion valid only in relation to LUNA.
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However, during a press briefing following the indictment of 10 individuals connected to the collapse of the Terra stablecoin ecosystem by the Seoul Southern District Prosecutor’s office, the prosecutor reportedly identified Signum as the Swiss bank account where Kwon transferred over 10,000 Bitcoin (BTC) from the Terra platform and the Luna Foundation Guard to a cold wallet, subsequently converting it to fiat currency.
The Financial and Securities Crime Joint Investigation Unit of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutor’s office, led by Dan Seong-han, indicated that they are tracking Bitcoin owned by the Luna Foundation Guard and that the transferred sum, which corresponds with the SEC complaint, is around $100 million (approximately 130 billion won).
The prosecutors clarified that the $100 million was not solely held in the Signum account and was distributed across various locations. It was confirmed that a portion of the funds was sent to the Kim & Chang law firm account to cover legal expenses, while the remainder totaled billions of won.
Related: Terraform Labs co-founder and nine others indicted in South Korea
The SEC’s actions against Kwon and the company he co-founded preceded his arrest in Montenegro, where he currently faces extradition. South Korean authorities issued an arrest warrant for Kwon in September, and U.S. federal prosecutors announced criminal charges against him shortly after his arrest a month ago.
Magazine: Chinese billionaire’s $1B fraud charges, Kwon’s $11M bet, Zhu Su and Islam: Asia Express
