Key takeaways:
- Bank of Korea (BOK) Governor Rhee Chang-yong will meet CEOs of major Korean banks to discuss stablecoin issuance.
- The meeting is scheduled for June 23rd at the Bank of Korea’s head office.
- The banks include KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori, NH Nonghyup, and IBK Industrial Bank of Korea.
- New Stablecoin discussions and debates heat up after the victory of crypto-friendly Lee Jae-myung as the new President of the nation.
Following Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung’s victory as the new president of South Korea last week, pro-crypto modifications have begun in the country’s regulatory landscape, as promised.
Lee envisions a broader crypto integration in the public sector, and as a beginning, proposed a Stablecoin bill that allows South Korean institutions with a capital above 500 million Won to issue stablecoins.
According to various sources, Bank of Korea’s Governor Rhee Chang-yong’s next week’s meeting with major commercial bank leaders will focus on the implications of the Stablecoin issuance.
The Bank of Korea’s Conference Will Likely Result in Won-based Stablecoin Issuance
BOK’s Governor Rhee has previously visited six top Korean banks, KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori, NH Nonghyup, and IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, and held independent meetings with the CEOs of each firm.
These banks are members of Project Agora, a collaboration with the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) to experiment with the use of blockchain technology in cross-border payments.
The conference scheduled for June 23rd, 2025, at BOK’s head office is considered a follow-up for the Stablecoin discussions. Since the long-time public crypto advocate Lee Jae-myung is in power, web3 enthusiasts expect positive news from the meetup.
South Korea Limits Stablecoin Issuance to Chosen Banks Only
At a press conference held on the 29th of last month, Rhee Chang-yong stated that since the Won stablecoin is an online substitute for currency, if non-bank institutions issued it at will, it could significantly undermine the effectiveness of monetary policy.
The proposed stablecoin issuance, via the Digital Asset Basic Act, requires institutions to gain approval from the Financial Services Commission. At an international conference held on the 2nd of this month, Rhee remarked that the issuance of stablecoins by non-bank institutions will not comply with the existing regulatory requirements.
Additionally, there are safety concerns if the authority issues a stablecoin license to private parties, especially an outside party, and such models could contribute to extreme instability during any unexpected financial crisis.
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New Pro-Crypto Regulations to Boost South Korea’s Crypto Market
South Korea already has a vibrant crypto market, comprising almost one-third of the entire population. The new bill, along with upcoming pro-crypto regulations, will likely boost South Korea’s entire economic milieu.
Crypto is so popular in South Korea, and all the presidential candidates had no choice but to embrace it. As a long-term adopter of new technologies, South Korea is bound to create new innovations and opportunities in the blockchain realm, independent of which party rules the nation.
Within the next two years, the nation’s crypto industry is expected to witness significant growth, posing competition to the U.S., which aims to become the crypto capital of the world.