South Korean Pop Star Says He Lost ‘$77,000’ on Crypto Investment

Seo Chul-goo (aka Xitsuh), a South Korean pop star, rapper, and TV personality, says he “lost” up to $77,000 on bad crypto investments. 

The star and his fiancee Lee Young-joo appeared on the E Channel TV talk show “Love of a Lifetime” (literal translation), where he discussed his precarious financial situation. 

TVDaily quoted Lee as saying,

“Seo Chul-goo tends to suffer from sleeplessness because of his work. But [recently] he hasn’t been able to sleep [due to his investments in] cryptocurrency. I really wish he wouldn’t [invest] in it.”

The duo are currently planning their wedding after dating for 10 years.

And the music star said:

“I wanted to raise [over $240,000] in two years so I could buy a house for us. But things are not going according to plan. If my investment had been successful, it would have been a great help to our wedding fund. But so far it looks like I have lost between $61,230 and $77,000.”

Seo (real name Seo Myeong-won) debuted in 2018 and has appeared on scores of rap and pop-themed reality TV shows.

Seo Chul-goo speaks on the TV talk show “Love of a Lifetime.” The caption reads: “Losses of between $61,230 and $77,000.” (Source: E Channel/NaverTV)

The show is hosted by Kim Gu-ra, one of South Korea’s top entertainers, as well as the TV presenter Kim Min-jung.

The show focuses on the financial situations of celebrity couples, with economic experts invited to advise the couples on how best to accumulate wealth and safeguard their investments.

During the broadcast, Seo was shown nervously looking at crypto charts on PC monitors.

South Korean Celebrities’ Crypto Connections

Seo is not the only South Korean music star to have gone public with his crypto regrets.

In 2018, Park Kyung, a member of the K-pop act Block B, said that he had made a “foolish” Bitcoin (BTC) investment that had left him in the red.

At the time, Segye Ilbo quoted Park as saying he had “learned a lesson” from his investment.

Last year, the South Korean entertainment world was rocked by the news that Park Min-young, one of the nation’s top female actresses, had been dating Kang Jong-hyun, a mysterious recluse who police think owns a controlling stake in the Bithumb crypto exchange.

A media expose reported that Kang had bought Park’s talent agency and had installed the actress’ older sister as a director of another company he allegedly owns.

Police raided Kang-affiliated offices in October last year and prosecutors are currently trying to convict him of price manipulation-related offenses.

Crypto has also been the subject matter for notable South Korean dramas and movies, including 2021’s Twenty Hacker.

Twenty Hacker is a crypto-themed title starring the K-pop stars Viini, Lim Nayoung, and Cho Hyun Young.