While many crypto scammers eventually face justice, few have managed to fleece investors twice. Enter ‘HODL Kim’ – real name Park – who just got nabbed again in South Korea for an alleged $47 million cryptocurrency fraud. Apparently, his first $14 million scam wasn’t enough.
The Seoul Southern District Court wasn’t playing around when they rearrested Kim on February 20, 2025. This time, he and his buddy Mr. Moon cooked up a scheme involving a cryptocurrency called Artube (ATT). Between March 2021 and April 2022, they managed to separate investors from a cool 68 billion won. Not bad for a guy who was out on bail.
The scam was textbook crypto fraud. Kim and Moon allegedly pumped up ATT’s price through wash trading, created fake hype, and dumped their holdings once enough unsuspecting investors bought in. Classic pump-and-dump, just with fancier digital packaging. They fed investors a steady diet of misleading information about the Artube project, watching as their victims gobbled it up. Like his previous scheme at Consolidated Trading LLC, Kim created false statements to deceive his investors. The judge cited serious concerns about potential evidence tampering when issuing the new arrest warrant.
South Korea’s crypto market is reeling from the scandal. Trust? Shot. Regulatory scrutiny? Coming in hot. The whole mess has put a spotlight on just how vulnerable crypto investors can be when confronted with smooth-talking fraudsters who know how to manipulate the market. Unlike traditional cryptocurrency exchanges, their scheme operated outside regulated trading platforms.
Prosecutors are building what looks like an airtight case against Kim and Moon, focusing on their false disclosures and market manipulation tactics. The crypto community and regulators are watching closely – this isn’t just another fraud case, it’s a wake-up call for the entire industry.
The scandal perfectly illustrates the wild west nature of cryptocurrency markets. While Kim sits in custody, worried about evidence tampering and flight risk charges, thousands of investors are left holding worthless ATT tokens.
The irony of his nickname ‘HODL’ – crypto-speak for holding onto investments long-term – isn’t lost on anyone. Turns out the only thing Kim was holding onto was other people’s money.
