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Gov't to effectively remove caps on monetary rewards for reporting corporate misconduct

Published: 10 Mar. 2026, 16:05

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the Blue House in Jongno District, central Seoul, on March 10. [JOINT RPESS CORPS]

The government will effectively remove caps on monetary rewards for anyone reporting corporate misconduct and illegal activity, President Lee Jae Myung announced on Tuesday.

“We will increase such monetary rewards without limits,” Lee said at the ninth Cabinet meeting at the Blue House on Tuesday. “If people know that they will be able to receive tens of billions of won for reporting illegal activities, that kind of misconduct will inevitably be exposed.”

Regarding the move, Lee said, “It seems that corporate misconduct and illegal practices have long been treated as customary in industrial and economic sectors. Companies need to stop thinking that they can make money via collusion, taking excessive profits or abusing their power.”

The president instructed the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) to review a system under which rewards for reporting unfair corporate practices would be paid as a certain percentage of the fines imposed on the company facing punishment.

“I have said that if anyone manipulates stock prices, it will ‘ruin their family’ and ‘bring complete financial ruin,’” he said. “In the future, other forms of misconduct and illegal activity will also face massive fines and will inevitably be exposed.

Given the incentive, Lee predicted that “reports will also include past misconduct.”

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with business leaders at the Blue House in Jongno District, central Seoul, on March 10. [JOINT RPESS CORPS]

“Some companies could actually go bankrupt,” Lee cautioned. “So they should completely abandon the idea of gaining profits through unfair or illegal transactions. This is not a threat but a well-intentioned warning. Please prepare for this in advance.”

“Many ministries besides the FTC also operate reward systems,” the president said. “As long as the government does not incur losses, rewards should be paid boldly and without limits based on a certain percentage, with a minimum amount guaranteed. Other ministries should also prepare such systems.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY PARK JONG-SUH [[email protected]]