YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — The Financial Services Commission (FSC) of South Korea denied reports suggesting it had finalized plans to introduce corporate crypto accounts. On Dec. 4, the FSC clarified that discussions are ongoing and no decisions have been made.
According to Korea Economic Daily, anonymous sources claimed the FSC had prepared a phased roadmap. The report stated that starting in 2025, universities and local governments might gain access to corporate crypto accounts, followed by corporations and financial institutions later. However, the FSC issued a statement urging caution,
“The issue of corporate real-name accounts for virtual assets is set to undergo further discussion, and specific measures have not yet been finalized.”
The FSC also launched a crypto committee on Nov. 6, aiming to evaluate possible changes to institutional crypto participation.
Crypto Regulations Limit Corporate Participation
South Korea’s strict crypto regulations have created hurdles for corporations trading cryptocurrencies on platforms offering fiat-to-crypto services. Local laws require investors to use real-name accounts provided by banks partnered with licensed cryptocurrency exchanges. Presently, only five exchanges have these partnerships.
To comply with Anti-Money Laundering (AML) guidelines, banks generally prohibit corporations from opening such accounts. As a result, South Korea’s crypto market remains dominated by retail crypto trading, with institutional participation effectively restricted.
This reliance on retail investors has propelled the Korean won (KRW) to rank among the top fiat trading pairs in global cryptocurrency markets, as noted by Kaiko in Q1 2024.
South Korea’s Crypto Market Shows Retail Dominance
A recent political event highlighted the size of South Korea’s crypto market. During a brief six-hour period on Dec. 4, President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, only to have the decision overturned by the National Assembly and later retracted.
During this timeframe, local media reported nearly $35 billion in 24-hour cryptocurrency trading volume. This figure exceeded Indonesia’s total cryptocurrency trading volume for all of 2024 through October.
South Korea’s crypto market is driven by retail activity, while regulations continue to limit corporate access. Discussions around allowing corporate crypto accounts remain in early stages, with no specific measures confirmed.
As of now, corporations remain excluded from real-name account services, while retail investors continue to sustain South Korea’s significant cryptocurrency trading volumes.
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