The South Korean Government Public Ethics Committee released asset reports for 2025 on public officials.
Seoul City Council Member Kim Hye-young reported virtual assets valued at 1.7 billion won.
The high-ranking official held the highest amount among all and led the asset disclosure list.
Other Public Officials and Their Holdings
A total of 411 public officials disclosed virtual assets from a group of 2,047 officials. The overall reported value reached 14.41228 billion won, with an average holding of 35.07 million won.
Seoul City Council Member Kim Hye-young ranked first by reporting 1.7656 billion won in digital assets. Her portfolio includes 16 different coins with holdings in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, and Ripple.
She also declared her spouse’s Ethereum and her eldest son’s Ripple holdings on the report. The second highest virtual asset holder was Seoul City Councilor Choi Min-gyu, with holdings of 1.62136 billion won.
He reported owning Ripple, Artidiums, and Ads in his name, as disclosed in his filings. The third largest holder was Kim Ki-hwan, CEO of Busan-Ulsan Expressway Co., Ltd.
He declared digital assets valued at 1.42618 billion won from various cryptocurrencies in his name. Other notable public officials include Kim Dae-hwan, Oh Moon-kyo, Park Byeong-chun, and several assemblymen.
Kim Dae-hwan, secretary-general of the Labor-Management Development Foundation, reported assets worth 1.369 billion won. Oh Moon-kyo, president of the Korean National Police University, disclosed digital assets totaling 656.68 million won.
New Regulations and Market Response
Virtual assets have been a required report item for public officials since last year, with clear guidelines now. Officials of Grade 4 or higher must list coin types and quantities in their asset disclosures.
Officials of Grade 1 or above must also detail the acquisition methods and transaction history for the year. The reported asset values were calculated based on the average daily price on the registration date.
Google recently blocked access to 17 unregistered cryptocurrency exchanges at the request of financial authorities. Major platforms such as KuCoin, MEXC, and Poloniex were part of the blocked exchanges list.
South Korea’s financial regulators continue to strengthen control over the digital asset market and exchanges. The market has reacted to these regulatory steps with an increased focus on compliance and safety measures. Officials and market experts expect these changes to boost transparency and trust in digital finance.
South Korea has shown strong progress in disclosing virtual asset holdings among high-ranking public officials. The recent measures by Google and financial regulators mark a new era in digital asset management.