This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz RM Report site at 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 11, 2026.
It has been nearly a year since the Korea Fair Trade Commission sent review reports to major securities firms and banks over the government bond auction bid-rigging case, but a date has not yet been set for the full commission meeting that will determine whether to refer the case to prosecutors and the level of sanctions.
Legal sources noted that the longer the full commission meeting is delayed, the greater the concerns over a criminal liability gap as the statute of limitations nears, as well as rising risks in evidence management and burdens on corporations.
◇In its third year of investigation, but no full commission meeting yet… Prosecutors say there is not enough time to investigate
According to legal sources on the 11th, the government bond auction bid-rigging case is now awaiting only deliberation by the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC)'s full commission. The core allegation is that primary dealers (PDs) in government bonds shared bidding information in advance during the auction process to maximize profits.
The Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) began its investigation in 2023 and in March last year sent review reports to 10 securities firms (Kyobo Securities, Daishin Securities, Mirae Asset Securities, Samsung Securities, Shinhan Investment, Korea Investment & Securities Co., KB Securities, NH Investment & Securities, Meritz Securities, Kiwoom Securities) and five banks (KB Kookmin Bank, IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, NH NongHyup, KDB Korea Development Bank, KEB Hana Bank). The review report is akin to a prosecutorial indictment, containing alleged violations of law by those surveyed and the process. It is a step typically taken ahead of full commission deliberations.
The schedule for the full commission meeting on the government bond auction bid-rigging case has reportedly not been set. The Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) usually holds full commission meetings every Wednesday, and the meeting scheduled for that day is set to discuss the level of sanctions in the sugar cartel case. An FTC official said, "All cases are being handled sequentially in accordance with procedures."
However, legal sources voiced concern that it has been nearly a year since the review reports were sent with no full commission meeting date set.
The statute of limitations is cited as the biggest issue. Because violations of the Fair Trade Act require going through the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC)'s full commission to decide whether to refer the case to prosecutors, any delay at this stage inevitably slows prosecutorial investigations and indictments as well. Even after the full commission meeting, discussions among each Commissioner over the level of sanctions take a certain amount of time.
The statute of limitations for alleged violations of the Fair Trade Act is five years. While it varies depending on how the end point of the collusion is viewed, some acts may already be nearing expiration.
This concern has also been raised within the government. Minister Jung Sung-ho of the Ministry of Justice said at a Cabinet meeting on the 3rd, "Since 2021, there have been Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) referral cases where just the investigation period took from a year and a half to as long as four years," adding, "The statute of limitations is five years, and in most cases the referrals are made when the five years are nearly up."
Prosecutors said that bid-rigging cases recently indicted were also referred by the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) when the statute of limitations was imminent, forcing investigations to proceed under tight time constraints.
◇Harder to secure evidence… burdens on corporations also grow
There are also concerns that uncovering the substance of the collusion could become more difficult. The longer the full commission meeting is delayed, the more time corporations have to prepare for prolonged legal responses, during which defense arguments accumulate, making it harder to clearly identify the substance of the collusion. There is also the possibility that key evidence not captured during the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC)'s investigation phase will become harder to secure as time passes. A prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said, "The more time is delayed, the more it gives corporations time to prepare to make false and distorted claims."
In fact, similar issues emerged in the power equipment bid-rigging case that was sent to trial last month. During the investigation, prosecutors detected indications that some corporations attempted to downplay the case as "volume allocation," which carries relatively lighter sanctions. The Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) viewed it as a volume allocation under unfair concerted acts, but prosecutors later confirmed additional facts through search and seizure and other compulsory measures that bid prices had been shared multiple times. Based on this, prosecutors exercised a separate right to request referral that included price-fixing as well.
Notably, indications were also found that the colluding corporations had systematically attempted to conceal and destroy evidence. Prosecutors obtained an internal document from one corporation that had been prepared since the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC)'s investigation phase, a file shared with employees under the name "prevention measures." The document specifically outlined response plans with evidence destruction in mind, such as banning work communications via the KakaoTalk messenger, refraining from using email, regularly replacing PC hard drives, and setting passwords on USBs and physically destroying them.
Observers also said the burden on corporations is not small. While filing objections to review reports is a procedure to guarantee corporations' right to defense, the lack of clear criteria or schedule management for the full commission meeting can increase their burden. In fact, corporations' submission of opinions on the review reports was reportedly completed in August last year. At the time, the industry discussed the possibility of a full commission meeting within the year, but the final conclusion has spilled over into the new year.
A legal source said, "The Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC)'s investigation period is on the long side, but there is no small amount of discontent among corporations over not being able to predict when a full commission meeting will be set after the investigation ends," adding, "If administrative disposition decisions are delayed for a long time, it also becomes difficult to gauge when prosecutors or the courts will render their judgments."