Crypto businesses in Korea turn to foreigners as strategic detour

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HONG KONG — Companies in Korea are turning to foreign nationals to launch new crypto ventures as legislation for the Digital Asset Basic Act remains delayed, seeking to secure early partnerships and infrastructure amid a legal vacuum, analysts said.

Hana Financial Group is among those moving in this direction. In partnership with Circle and Crypto.com, the group said on March 5 that it is piloting stablecoin-based payments for foreign visitors in Korea.

The initiative, led by its card unit Hana Card, allows overseas users to make purchases at local merchants using cards linked to stablecoins. Transactions are settled in USDC, Circle’s dollar-pegged token, with foreign holders of Crypto.com's Visa cards receiving 5 percent cashback at participating stores.

“Through this initiative, we seek to confirm the growth potential of stablecoins as a payment tool while expanding cooperation with global digital asset operators,” Hana said in a statement.

Payment firm Danal also plans to launch a similar service this month in partnership with Circle and Binance Pay, enabling Binance users visiting Korea to pay with existing crypto holdings without currency exchange. Transactions in USDC will be settled in Korean won for merchants.

Binance’s Asia-Pacific head, SB Seker, told The Korea Times on Jan. 30 that payments are a key focus of its Korea business. With crypto-backed payments and remittances restricted for domestic users, the firm is working with licensed local providers to enable inbound transactions from overseas visitors, with the aim of setting a precedent for regulators.

The trend is gaining traction across the industry.

Crypto.com launched Crypto.com Pay for foreign visitors on March 17 in partnership with KG Inicis, a local payment gateway provider. BC Card is testing USDC-based payment technology with Coinbase, while KB Kookmin Card has filed a patent for hybrid payment systems combining stablecoins with conventional card payments.

“It is effectively the only viable path to legally execute stablecoin payments under Korea’s current regulatory environment,” said Moyed Eun, a research analyst at Delta Network and contributor to the Asia Stablecoin Alliance.

He added that offering such services to domestic users carries significant legal uncertainty before the Digital Asset Basic Act takes effect. The legislative process — both proposal and review — has been delayed amid debates, including issuer eligibility for won-denominated stablecoins.

Under current rules, foreign nationals using dollar-based stablecoins held in overseas wallets can be treated as conducting foreign currency transactions under the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, minimizing regulatory conflict, Eun said.

Industry players expect stablecoin payments to gain early traction in foreign tourism and cross-border e-commerce.

Andres Kim, Tether’s regional expansion lead, said at the March 26 meeting hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea that the country is missing economic opportunities due to outdated payment infrastructure, adding that stablecoins could help bridge the gap.

“Services for foreign users effectively serve as a de facto regulatory sandbox, enabling firms to validate technical and operational infrastructure ahead of a won-based stablecoin,” said An Kwang-ho, a research analyst at Tiger Research.

“Early control of infrastructure and partnerships will be a key competitive advantage as the rollout of won-denominated stablecoins comes into clearer view,” An added.