Computers Crypto bankrupt Do Kwon sentenced to 15 years in prison
Digital currency entrepreneur Do Kwon has been sentenced to 15 years in prison following a 40 billion dollar collapse of his business. New York judge Paul Engelmayer called it a fraud of epic proportions.
12.12.2025, 04:02
SDA
As US media reported from the courtroom, he went beyond the sentence requested by the public prosecutor, who had demanded 12 years in prison.
Kwon, now 34, had created the linked cryptocurrencies Terra and Luna at the company Terraform Labs in Singapore. However, the Terra-Luna system collapsed spectacularly in May 2022. Investors came away empty-handed. Kwon admitted during the trial that he had concealed Terraform's financial problems. He had assured investors until the end that the system was safe. US investors were also affected by the fraud.
The bankruptcy triggered a chain reaction in the digital currency business. The prosecution argued that Kwon had also contributed to the collapse of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange. FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence.
False passport in Montenegro
Kwon apologized to the investors in court. He and his business partner Hon Chand Yun were arrested in Montenegro's capital Podgorica in March 2023 when they attempted to fly from there to Dubai using forged Costa Rican passports. Montenegro subsequently received extradition requests from both the USA and South Korea. After a long legal tug-of-war, Kwon was finally deported to the USA in 2024. He is also accused of fraud in South Korea.
President Donald Trump, whose family is itself active in the crypto coin business, led the US government on a more friendly course towards digital currencies. He also pardoned the founder of the digital currency exchange Binance, Changpeng Zhao, who was convicted of violating money laundering laws. Although he had already served his four-month prison sentence, the subsequent pardon opens the door for him to potentially be active in the industry again.
