Sung Yu-ri’s Husband Ahn Sung-hyun Released on Bail After 4.5-Year Prison Sentence for Crypto Bribery

Ahn Sung-hyun, the husband of singer and actress Sung Yu-ri, has been granted bail following his conviction in a high-profile cryptocurrency bribery case. The Seoul High Court approved the bail request on June 11, just months after Ahn was sentenced to four years and six months in prison.

The court imposed a bail amount of 50 million KRW (approximately $36,000 USD) and placed strict conditions on Ahn’s release. These include a ban on contacting other defendants or witnesses and a requirement to seek court approval before leaving the country.

Ahn was convicted in December 2023 for receiving tens of billions of won in bribes related to the listing of digital assets on a cryptocurrency exchange. He was also ordered to forfeit two luxury watches received during the illicit process.

Alongside Ahn, Bithumb Holdings’ former CEO Lee Sang-joon was sentenced to two years in prison and fined 50 million KRW, while businessman Kang Jong-hyun received a sentence of one year and six months. Prosecutors stated that Ahn, in collusion with Kang, had misled him into believing a bribe of 2 billion KRW was urgently needed for a listing, a claim that turned out to be false.

Prior to the sentencing, Sung Yu-ri publicly expressed her emotional turmoil over the ordeal, stating her hopes for the truth to be revealed. The court’s guilty verdict, however, drew public attention not only to Ahn but also to Sung Yu-ri herself.

Despite the controversy, Sung Yu-ri resumed her activities in the entertainment industry last month, four months after her husband’s imprisonment, appearing on a home shopping broadcast.