Whistleblowers who report cartels and other unfair trade practices in Korea will be eligible to receive up to 10% of the imposed fines as rewards, with no upper limit. For large-scale cartel cases, this could translate into rewards worth tens of billions of won.
The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said Tuesday it has drafted a revised "Regulation on the Payment of Rewards to Reporters of Violations of the Fair Trade Act and Other Laws," and will hold a public administrative notice period through the 10th of next month.
The core of the revision is the abolition of the reward payment cap. Previously, reward ceilings were set by type of violation: 3 billion won for cartels, 2 billion won for unfair support and private benefit, and 500 million won for violations of laws governing subcontracting, franchises, and dealerships. "Compared to the risks that internal whistleblowers must bear, the compensation has not been sufficient, which has tended to discourage the reporting of large-scale cases," an FTC official explained.
President Lee Jae-myung also instructed at a Cabinet meeting the previous day that legislation be pursued to strengthen the reward system to encourage the reporting of misconduct such as stock manipulation and cartels. "If those who report large-scale organizations can receive enough reward money to change their lives for good, the deterrent and preventive effect on crime would be significant," he said.
Once the revision takes effect, the reward cap will be...
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