Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon will be extradited to the United States to face criminal charges, almost a year after his arrest in Montenegro. Both the United States and South Korea have submitted extradition requests to Montenegrin authorities. On February 21, the High Court of Podgorica in Montenegro ruled that Do Kwon would be extradited to the United States, rejecting an extradition request from South Korea.
The move comes after Kwon's legal team recently won an appeal to overturn the High Court's ruling in favor of the US and South Korea's extradition requests. Kwon was arrested by Montenegrin authorities in March 2023 while trying to flee to another country with a false passport and was later sentenced to four months in prison. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Terraform Labs and Kwon of "orchestrating a multibillion-dollar securities fraud involving an algorithmic stablecoin and other digital assets" after the collapse of # UST in 2022, leading to significant losses for investors.
In January 2024, the SEC agreed to delay the trial date for the Terraform case, as requested by Kwon's legal team, who said they wanted their client to attend in person. It is unclear when Kwon will be transferred to the United States. Meanwhile, former Terraform Labs CFO Han Chang-joon, who was arrested alongside Kwon, has been extradited to South Korea.
