South Korean Prosecutors Make Fresh Bid to Arrest Terraform Co-founder Daniel Shin

Tim Alper

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked...

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June 26, 2023

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South Korean prosecutors hope to arrest Daniel Shin, the co-founder of Terraform Labs, after officers raided his company Chai Corporation. 

Meanwhile, evidence appears to show that Do Kwon, the Terraform CEO, established a company in Serbia during his 11-month flight from the prosecution.

Shin was questioned by prosecutors as part of their investigation into Terraform and Do Kwon before a court rejected an arrest warrant request late last year. 

But Yonhap reported that officers recently raided Chai, a payments company and now intend to ask a court to grant them an arrest warrant.

Prosecutors claim that Shin knew Terra tokens were on the verge of collapse but proceeded to sell coins regardless – to make profits of around $108 million.

His former partner Do Kwon has since been apprehended in Montenegro after allegedly attempting to leave the country with forged travel and identity documents.

Shin, SBS reported, claims to have severed ties with Do Kwon and Terra some time ago. 

Shin, the founder of Chai, established a business partnership with Terra, which he asserts was discontinued in 2020.

But a 2022 interview on a YouTube channel showed Shin explaining that Chai products could be “topped up” at Terra “stations” – an indication that the partnership was still live in early 2022. 

The video in question was posted three weeks prior to the Terra ecosystem crash.

Shin maintained that the video and its contents were misinterpreted, and his legal team clarified in a statement to SBS that Shin “has not participated in Terra’s management since parting ways with Kwon” in 2020.

His team further added that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had issued charges against Kwon. 

But the team noted that charges made no mention of Shin, an indication that the SEC did not think he was connected with fraud or securities-related violations.

How Shin’s “Ex-partner” Do Kwon Registered a Company in Serbia

Meanwhile, in a separate report, SBS explained that Kwon had created a company – apparently during his sojourn in Serbia. 

Legal documents show that the company was founded for a fee of around $1.

Legal documents show that the firm is named Chodocoi 22 Limited Belgrade, and was founded on October 12, 2022. 

The record shows that Kwon is named as a co-founder of this firm, along with an individual named surnamed Han – likely Han Chang-joon, the former CEO of Chai.

Han was arrested along with Kwon last week.

The legal firm that registered the business refused to comment on whether or not it knew that Kwon was wanted by Interpol when it issued the license.

The firm’s stated activity was listed as “consulting activities related to business and other management.”