South Korea is expected to gradually lift its ban on corporate investments in crypto assets starting this year.
Yonhap News revealed this development on January 8, citing the country’s financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC).
Institutional Cryptocurrency Investment Comes to Korea
FSC is said to have outlined a strategy to open up the crypto asset space to institutional investors. The move is expected to create a more regulated and stable environment for cryptocurrency investors, both individuals and institutions, in the country.
Currently, South Korean regulations restrict the issuance of real-name accounts to companies. This restriction notwithstanding there is no legal barrier to granting such accounts.
Real name accounts are required for cryptocurrency investments. However, regulators have instructed banks not to issue these accounts to companies, limiting institutional participation in the market.
To date, regulators only allow retail investors to invest in the cryptocurrency market.
According to Yonhap, on January 8, the FSC announced that it will consider a plan to gradually allow companies to open real-name accounts on the exchange. This will start with non-profit organizations before expanding further.
The latest move from South Korea follows the implementation of the ‘Crypto-Money Asset User Protection Act’ in 2024. The act aims to protect individual cryptocurrency investors and improve stability overall market.
Currently, the FSC appears to be pushing for a second phase of crypto asset regulations. This includes addressing issues such as stablecoins, listing standards and codes of conduct for crypto asset exchanges.
“We need to discuss creating listing standards, how to handle stablecoins, and how to create codes of conduct for crypto asset exchanges. We will work to synchronize with global regulations in the crypto asset market,” said FSC director Kwon Dae-young.
This latest development follows the recent revelation that more than 30% of South Korea’s population is investing in cryptocurrency. Data shows that as of the end of November, the number of domestic digital asset investors reached 15.59 million, an increase of 610K compared to the end of October.
In another positive development, the country delayed the 20% tax on income from crypto assets exceeding 2.5 million won in December. So, South Korea appears to be positioning itself to pioneered the global cryptocurrency market with favorable regulations.
