PANews reported on October 8 that according to Protos, citing Korean media (Asia News), on the first day of the parliamentary audit held in Seoul, South Korean lawmakers requested a special investigation into the KOK cryptocurrency scam that may have been promoted by the Korean right-wing daily newspaper (Chosun Ilbo). The Victims Alliance accused two subsidiaries of (Chosun Ilbo) of knowing that cryptocurrencies were fraudulent, but still vigorously promoted them. Alliance leader Jin Eun-ja believes that scammers used these positive publicity to reassure investors that KOK is legal, and the newspaper also caused the prosecution to be delayed. It is estimated that in South Korea alone, the "KOK" incident caused a loss of 4 trillion won (US$2.97 billion).
South Korea's investigation into the KOK cryptocurrency fraud case, led by the Ulsan District Prosecutors' Office, has been ongoing for several years. While no major breakthroughs have been made, South Korea is still awaiting the extradition of a major KOK suspect named "Mr. Han." He was arrested in the United States earlier this year and reportedly gambled with victims' cash while on bail. As a result, the Victims' Alliance called for a separate, more thorough investigation to speed up accountability. Democratic Party lawmakers Yang Moon-suk and Min Hyung-bae reportedly expressed the same view in Monday's audit.
The KOK token attracted nearly 2 million investors worldwide between 2019 and 2023. Its content platform KOK PLAY offers Korean movies and games that can be consumed with KOK tokens, which can in turn be exchanged for Bitcoin at a commission of 7-12%. Investors also receive commissions for attracting other investors, essentially a Ponzi scheme and multi-level marketing plan. As early as April 2022, IT Chosun, the business news division of the Chosun Ilbo, reported an important milestone for KOK, according to (Asia News). Two months later, KOK was awarded the "Consumer Satisfaction" award by another subsidiary, Digital Chosun.
