South Korea's leading Bitcoin exchange Bithumb received an unpleasant New Year's "gift" from the local tax authoritiesdepartments in the form of accounts for more than 80 billion ($ 68.9 million), reports the Korea Herald.
The largest statement was made by the largestBithumb shareholder, Vidente. According to its representatives, the National Tax Service of South Korea has collected from the exchange withheld taxes on profits received from investments of foreign platform users.
It is reported that Vidente learned about this tax last Wednesday when the company acquired a 34.24% stake in bithumb Holdings, the parent company of Bithumb.
According to the publication, foreign legalindividuals without permanent registration in South Korea must pay withheld taxes, however, such rules have not yet been applied to the cryptocurrency industry.
Representatives of Bithumb intend to challenge this tax in court, citing, inter alia, the lack of clear tax rules for cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea.
Recall that at the end of November the National CommitteeThe National Assembly of the Republic of Korea adopted a bill on the regulation of virtual currencies, but the taxation procedure for local and foreign users of trading platforms is not spelled out.
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