Indicted on charges of fraud and breach of trust under aggravated economic crimes law

First trial: 4.5-year prison term; appeals court: acquittal, now upheld by Supreme Court

Former Bithumb Holdings CEO and businessman found guilty

Pro golfer An Sung-hyun arrives at the Seoul Southern District Court for a warrant review hearing in September 2023. [Yonhap]
Pro golfer An Sung-hyun arrives at the Seoul Southern District Court for a warrant review hearing in September 2023. [Yonhap]

Pro golfer An Sung-hyun has been acquitted of charges that he pocketed billions of won by promising to arrange cryptocurrency listings on a virtual asset exchange.

The Supreme Court's Second Division upheld Thursday an appeals court ruling acquitting An of charges including fraud and breach of trust under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes. Lee Sang-jun, former CEO of Bithumb Holdings, and businessman Kang Jong-hyun, who were tried alongside An, received suspended sentences — two years in prison suspended for three years, and one year suspended for two years, respectively.

An and Lee were accused of accepting billions of won from Kang between September and November 2021 in exchange for arranging the listing of a specific cryptocurrency on the Bithumb exchange, a charge constituting breach of trust. Bithumb Holdings is the largest shareholder of Bithumb Korea. An also faced a separate fraud charge for allegedly deceiving Kang into handing over 2 billion won ($1.5 million) by falsely claiming that Lee was demanding the bribe money urgently.

The first trial, held in December 2024, found all three guilty and immediately remanded them into custody.

An was sentenced to four years and six months in prison, Lee to two years, and Kang to one year and six months.

The first trial found An and Lee guilty of accepting bribes in the form of luxury watches and restaurant memberships. It also found An guilty of defrauding Kang out of 2 billion won under the guise of a listing fee.

However, the court acquitted both on the charge of receiving 3 billion won in cash, saying there was no meaningful evidence that An had passed any portion of the 3 billion won received from Kang on to Lee. The court said the luxury watches and other items confirmed to have been shared between An and Lee were sufficient for a guilty finding on those counts.

On sentencing, the court said that soliciting listings "undermines the fairness and transparency of a clean and sound virtual asset trading market" and "can cause enormous harm to well-meaning investors by seriously eroding their trust."

The appeals court acquitted An in February, declining — unlike the first trial — to accept that An had received luxury watches or other items of value.

The appeals court said it could not accept the credibility of Kang's testimony that he had given An money and gifts in exchange for arranging the cryptocurrency listing.

It also said the fraud charge over the 2 billion won was logically incompatible with the other allegations against An.

The appeals court reduced the sentences for Lee and Kang as well, handing down two years suspended for three and one year suspended for two, respectively. It noted that the total value of illicit payments Lee received in his capacity as an executive of the company operating Bithumb amounted to 260 million won, but said the amount was reduced as a result of An's acquittal.

The Supreme Court upheld the appeals court ruling, finding no violation of logic or rules of experience, and no misapplication of law.

An turned professional in 2005 and served as a reserve-squad coach for South Korea's national golf team from 2014 to 2018. An married actor Sung Yu-ri, a former member of the K-pop group Fin.K.L, in 2017.


notstrong@heraldcorp.com