Delio (South Korea Crypto Lender Fraud)
Summary
Delio was South Korea's first VASP-licensed cryptocurrency deposit and lending platform, founded in 2018 by CEO Jeong Sang-ho. In June 2023, the platform abruptly froze approximately $169–180 million in customer withdrawals affecting roughly 2,800 investors, citing market volatility linked to the concurrent collapse of sister-platform Haru Invest and cascading losses from the November 2022 FTX bankruptcy. A Seoul court declared Delio bankrupt on November 22, 2024, and prosecutors at Seoul Southern District Court demanded a 20-year prison sentence for Jeong Sang-ho in April–May 2026, with a first-instance verdict scheduled for July 16, 2026.
Connected Entities
1 entities · 10 linked investigations- + 10 more
Timeline(21 events)
2018-01-01
Delio founded by CEO Jeong Sang-ho in South Korea as a cryptocurrency deposit and lending platform.
FinTech Global2021-08-01
Alleged embezzlement period begins, per prosecutors. Delio begins offering yield products including returns of up to 10.7% APR on Bitcoin, Ether, and USDT deposits.
CoinTelegraph2021-01-01
Delio launches Delioswap, a decentralized exchange, entering the DeFi market.
U.Today Press Release2022-01-01
Delio becomes the first crypto lending and depositing company in South Korea to receive a VASP license from the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU).
CoinTelegraph Press Release2022-07-01
Delio publicly launches as South Korea's first 'crypto bank,' managing approximately $1.3 billion in digital assets (41,743 BTC and 118,083 ETH).
Decrypt2022-11-01
FTX exchange collapses. A significant portion of Delio's customer assets held in FTX accounts become irrecoverable. Related entity B&S Holdings allegedly loses 350 billion Korean won through FTX exposure.
Dzilla2023-06-13
Haru Invest halts all withdrawals, citing false information from B&S Holdings. Haru reports 350 billion Korean won in losses from FTX exposure via B&S.
Decrypt2023-06-14
Delio suspends all customer withdrawals, citing market volatility and the Haru Invest situation. Approximately 250 billion Korean won (~$169–180 million) belonging to ~2,800 investors is frozen.
Decrypt2023-06-16
Class-action lawsuits filed against both Haru Invest and Delio in South Korean courts.
The Korea Times2023-09-01
South Korea's FIU imposes a three-month business suspension and a fine of ~1.896 billion Korean won on Delio for AML compliance failures, and recommends dismissal of a senior executive.
Blockchain.news2024-02-01
Haru Invest CEO Hugo Hyungsoo Lee and two executives arrested by South Korean prosecutors on embezzlement and fraud charges.
CoinTelegraph2024-04-01
Seoul Rehabilitation Court rejects Delio's first corporate rehabilitation petition.
AInvest2024-11-22
Seoul court officially declares Delio bankrupt, with liabilities of approximately 245 billion Korean won owed to approximately 2,800 customers.
CoinTelegraph2025-02-21
Deadline for creditors and customers to submit claims in Delio's bankruptcy proceedings.
Ask Korea Law2025-04-01
Jeong Sang-ho formally indicted at Seoul Southern District Court on charges of embezzling approximately 250 billion Korean won in customer crypto assets.
CoinTelegraph2025-01-01
Suwon Rehabilitation Court's 5th Division dismisses Delio's second corporate rehabilitation petition.
AInvest2026-04-30
Prosecutors at Seoul Southern District Court demand a 20-year prison sentence for Jeong Sang-ho during final arguments, citing embezzlement of ~$168.8 million from ~2,800 victims and 'active deceptive acts and false promotion.'
CoinTelegraph2026-07-16
First-instance verdict scheduled at Seoul Southern District Court in the criminal trial of Jeong Sang-ho.
CoinTelegraphDecision Log
- hash: 2sHGo8x8r8LrinngA7NHAXtQcAaMtSwWi2dsYEixrjhr
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain and source URLs are archived via the Internet Archive.
model: claude-sonnet-4-6
generated: 5/27/2026, 6:39:31 PM
last updated: 5/27/2026, 6:39:43 PM
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