South Korea has officially made digital asset ecosystem development a national priority for the next five years. The Presidential Committee on Policy Planning included it among 123 policy agendas under the Lee Jae-myung administration.
The committee listed “building a digital asset ecosystem” under its broader “innovative economy that leads the world” agenda. The Financial Services Commission will oversee this initiative, but specific implementation details remain undisclosed.
Details Remain Under Wraps Despite Policy Commitment
Currently, only the titles of all policy tasks are public, leaving the whole society, including the crypto industry, guessing. Observers can only refer to President Lee Jae-myung’s election promises for potential clues about the direction. These included allowing spot ETFs, legalizing security tokens, and creating won-backed stablecoins for domestic use.
However, many uncertainties remain about how these policies will be executed. The Financial Services Commission’s leadership role faces questions amid potential government restructuring plans. The policy planning committee previously considered splitting this organization, but the current status remains unclear.
Moreover, this “digital asset ecosystem” was not included among the 12 priority strategic tasks that received special emphasis. The committee highlighted key initiatives like AI industry development, Korean stock market support, and global soft power expansion.
Usually, presidential transition committees prepare national policy agendas before new administrations take office. However, upon winning the June 3 election and immediately taking office, President Lee’s administration had to form the Policy Planning Committee to decide policy agendas. This followed the unusual circumstances of President Yoon Suk-yeol’s impeachment after his failed martial law declaration last December.
Legislative Challenges Could Slow Implementation Timeline
Another significant uncertainty involves the complex legislative process of implementing comprehensive digital asset policies. ETFs, security tokens, and stablecoins all require new comprehensive digital asset laws beyond current regulations. The industry awaits “phase two legislation” following the implementation of the user protection law in July last year.
A digital asset bill, filed by a ruling party lawmaker in June, is already in the legislative pipeline but has not yet been actively discussed. Once put on the table, the road ahead can be pretty smooth, as the ruling party holds a comfortable majority, and the largest opposition’s presidential candidate also supported crypto development during the elections.
However, the 123-task agenda requires enacting or revising 951 laws and regulations nationwide. The government plans to submit 87% of the necessary legal amendments to the National Assembly by next year. Given this massive legislative workload, expecting digital asset legislation to receive top priority may be unrealistic.
Regional Competition Drives Policy Urgency
The passage of the GENIUS Act in the United States has accelerated dollar-based stablecoin adoption globally. This has raised global concerns about potential monetary sovereignty erosion from widespread dollar stablecoin usage, including in Korea.
The intensifying competition between the potential Asian hub of digital finance also pressures Korea to accelerate its policy development. Japanese companies have started building digital asset reserves, while Hong Kong recently implemented comprehensive stablecoin legislation. Singapore issued twice as many crypto exchange licenses in 2024 as in the previous year, making it one of the most crypto-friendly places in the world.
Future legislative discussions in Korea are expected to focus on regulations for stablecoins. The gradual allowance of corporate accounts, ETFs, and the introduction of leverage products on domestic crypto exchanges will likely be part of the debate.
Korean crypto investors are known for their high-risk tolerance. The country’s top crypto exchange, Upbit, currently ranks fourth globally in fiat-based trading volume, although it only allows Korean nationals to use the platform.
As of May 2025, South Korea has an estimated 9.7 million virtual asset users, with over 20 million accounts registered across major exchanges and wallet services. The user base is poised for further growth if corporate crypto trading is permitted and investor protections are elevated to the level of traditional financial markets.
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