Economy - The Korea Times

Will Lee administration push ahead with crypto taxation in 2027?

The number of investors holding more than 1 billion won ($722,000) worth of virtual assets on domestic won-based exchanges has surpassed 10,000, according to data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Sunday. The base of virtual asset investors is also expanding rapidly, with total users reaching 10.87 million. This means that about one in every five Koreans holds an account across the country’s five major exchanges, including Upbit and Bithumb. Their combined holdings are estimated at 111.65 trillion won. While both capital inflows and the investor base have grown significantly, profits from coin investments still remain outside the tax framework. This contrasts with the securities market, where reforms are underway to lower the capital gains tax threshold for major shareholders from 5 billion won per stock to 1 billion won. This has raised questions over whether the Lee Jae Myung administration, which is under pressure to secure revenue amid its expansionary fiscal stance, will move forward with implementing virtual asset taxation as scheduled in 2027. Data submitted by the FS

Aug 25, 2025By Jun Ji-hye

Will Lee administration push ahead with crypto taxation in 2027?

InterviewCircle to play role in Korean stablecoin issuance: company president

Circle President Heath Tarbert said there is a possibility that the company could be involved in issuing a Korean won-pegged stablecoin, if such a project becomes institutionalized, signaling support for the development of Korea's Web3 ecosystem. Circle is the issuer of USDC, one of the world's largest stablecoins, which is pegged to the U.S. dollar. "We're very keen to see additional stablecoins that are well-regulated, compliant, transparent and similar to USDC," Tarbert said in a one-on-one interview with The Korea Times during his visit to Korea Thursday. "It's possible Circle could be involved in the issuance, but it's also entirely possible that we could work with local players, local banks and other institutions that would issue it, making it interoperable with USDC and part of the Circle's stablecoin network," he added. Circle is already issuing EURC, a euro-denominated stablecoin, in the EU, and has made a strategic investment in Japanese startup JPYC, a Tokyo-based fintech that recently secured regulatory approval to issue Japan’s first yen-denominated stablecoin. A local repo

Aug 22, 2025By Lee Yeon-woo

Circle to play role in Korean stablecoin issuance: company president

ExclusiveTether executives visit Korea for high-level meetings

Just as Circle executives are currently engaged in business meetings in Korea, Tether executives are also visiting the country, according to industry sources, Thursday. Tether, the issuer of USDT, and Circle, the issuer of USDC, rank first and second in global stablecoin market share. Confirmed attendees from Tether so far include Marco Dal Lago, Tether’s vice president of global expansion and strategic partnerships, along with several other C-level executives. Sources said that some of these executives are already in Korea and have started holding meetings. “The team is small, and the schedule keeps changing,” one source said. With Korea ramping up its efforts to shape a domestic stablecoin environment, a wave of high-profile executive visits is underway. However, the nature of the engagements appears to differ. "While Circle is working to build a global payment network that could replace the SWIFT system, Tether is more like a platform startup offering the core technology and ecosystem for stablecoins," said Daniel Kim, CEO of Tiger Research. "Tether appears to be in the early stage

Aug 21, 2025By Lee Yeon-woo

Tether executives visit Korea for high-level meetings

Coinone shifts leadership solely to Lee Seong-hyun

Cha Myung-hoon, the founder of Korean cryptocurrency exchange Coinone who has led the company for the past 11 years, has stepped down from his role as CEO, the firm said Tuesday. Following Cha’s resignation, his co-CEO, Lee Seong-hyun, is taking charge of company operations going forward. Lee joined Coinone as chief operating officer in January and was appointed co-CEO the following month. As the sole chief executive, he will now be responsible for setting business strategies and overseeing overall operations to drive the firm’s long-term growth. After stepping down from the co-CEO position, Cha will focus on his role as chairman of the board. As chairman, he plans to address key management issues and help shape the company’s mid- to long-term vision, including exploring new business opportunities. Cha remains Coinone’s largest shareholder with a 53.46 percent stake. “This move is intended to enable the company to respond more flexibly to the evolving regulatory environment of the virtual asset industry and to strengthen competitiveness,” a Coinone official said. “Under the s

Aug 19, 2025By Jun Ji-hye

Coinone shifts leadership solely to Lee Seong-hyun

Dunamu fined for failing to comply with regulatory conditions on unlisted stock platform

Dunamu, the operator of Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, has been fined by financial authorities for failing to comply with conditions set for its major subsidiary, Stockplus Unlisted, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) said Tuesday. The financial watchdog disclosed on Monday that it had levied a 24 million won ($17,000) fine on Dunamu after finding that the company did not adhere to updates to the financial innovation service requirements issued in March 2022 and June 2023 regarding the subsidiary. Stockplus Unlisted, an unlisted stock trading platform launched by Dunamu in November 2019, was designated as a financial innovation service by the Financial Services Commission (FSC), the country’s top financial regulator, in April 2020. Its designation was renewed in March 2022 with stricter investor protection measures, including a rule preventing ordinary investors from purchasing additional professional-grade stocks. Despite this, the platform allowed ordinary investors who already held professional-grade stocks to make additional purchases between July 2022 and Se

Aug 19, 2025By Jun Ji-hye

Dunamu fined for failing to comply with regulatory conditions on unlisted stock platform

Busan expands global blockchain city initiative with Cambodia

Busan Digital Asset Nexus (Bdan), Korea’s only exchange dedicated to real-world assets (RWA), signed a memorandum of understanding with the Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC), Monday, to export Busan’s “blockchain city” model. The signing ceremony was held at the exchange’s headquarters in Busan. It was attended by Bdan CEO Kim Sang-min and company executives, alongside SERC Chairman Sou Socheat and other officials. The exchange told The Korea Times that the agreement aims to share Bdan’s expertise in developing blockchain with the Cambodian government while laying the groundwork for substantive cooperation between the two parties. “We are pleased to mark the first step in exporting Busan’s digital finance and blockchain city model infrastructure overseas,” Kim said. “Busan will continue to play a leading role in driving digital transformation not only across Asia but also in cities around the world, as a global hub for blockchain and digital finance.” The two sides will conduct joint research to explore the application of Busan’s blockchain city

Aug 18, 2025By Lee Yeon-woo

Busan expands global blockchain city initiative with Cambodia

Interview'Busan can outshine Estonia, Luxemburg in digital transformation'

Busan has long been known for its bustling ports and global trade links. Now, the city is setting its sights on a more ambitious export: itself. At the heart of that vision is Busan Digital Asset Nexus (Bdan), launched last October as Korea's only exchange dedicated to real-world assets (RWA). Unlike conventional crypto platforms that deal solely in digital tokens, Bdan's offerings are tied to seven tangible commodities, including gold, silver, platinum, palladium and copper. The platform has more than 1.2 million registered users and cumulative transactions totaling 1.2 trillion won ($866 million). For CEO Kim Sang-min, commodities are just the starting point. "I've often been asked what Bdan's most important product is," Kim said in a recent interview with The Korea Times. "For me, the most powerful RWA is Busan. My goal is to digitize this asset and sell it to the world." Kim, a former member of Korea’s 19th National Assembly, was known during his tenure for actively engaging with fintech entrepreneurs, including Lee Seung-gun, founder and CEO of Viva Republica. His early encounters

Aug 16, 2025By Lee Yeon-woo

'Busan can outshine Estonia, Luxemburg in digital transformation'

Upbit D Conference 2025 to chart blockchain's expanding influence

Dunamu, the operator of Korea's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Upbit, will explore blockchain's growing impact on everyday life at the upcoming Upbit D Conference (UDC), the company said Friday. Titled "Blockchain, to the Mainstream," the annual event will be held Sept. 9 at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas. It will feature fireside chats, panel discussions, mentoring sessions, exhibition booths and networking opportunities, and is open to anyone interested in blockchain. This year's keynote will be delivered by Patrick McHenry, former chair of the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services. McHenry played a pivotal role in securing bipartisan support for the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, which addresses the classification and regulatory oversight of digital assets. He will be joined by Dunamu's Chief Branding Impact Officer Yoon Sun-joo, who co-founded Coupang after graduating from Harvard Law School and the Kennedy School. Together, they will discuss emerging trends and global shifts in the digital asset and blockchain ecosystem. Trends in the c

Aug 15, 2025By Lee Yeon-woo

Upbit D Conference 2025 to chart blockchain's expanding influence

Upbit introduces crypto custody service for corporate clients

Dunamu, operator of Korea's largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, said Thursday that it has launched a custody service for corporate and institutional clients. With corporate investment in virtual assets gradually gaining regulatory approval, demand for secure storage and management is expected to rise. Upbit is proactively addressing this demand with its new service. The exchange said its custody service stores 100 percent of all deposited virtual assets in cold wallets, which are completely disconnected from the internet, effectively blocking threats such as cyberattacks and other external intrusions. To eliminate the risk of incidents caused by a single key being leaked, Upbit has adopted a multi-management system using technologies such as multi-party computation and distributed key generation. The service also offers a customization option, allowing wallets to be separated and managed based on type of asset and its intended use. This enables corporations and institutions to manage their virtual assets more systematically, improving accounting efficiency and audit readiness. In addit

Aug 14, 2025By Lee Yeon-woo

Upbit introduces crypto custody service for corporate clients

Dunamu to share crypto exchange expertise with Vietnamese bank

Dunamu, operator of Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, said Wednesday that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Vietnam’s state-controlled Military Bank to launch the Southeast Asian nation’s first domestic digital asset exchange. Dunamu said the MOU was formed Tuesday during the Korea-Vietnam Business Forum in Seoul. Under the MOU, Dunamu will serve as a key strategic partner to Military Bank, supporting the establishment of a digital asset exchange in Vietnam, the creation of regulatory and legal frameworks and the development of investor protection mechanisms. The Seoul-headquartered company also plans to share Upbit’s advanced technology. The cryptocurrency exchange, compliant with Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards, reports annual trading volumes of $135 billion and is recognized as Korea’s leading digital asset exchange. It is ranked among the top three globally in trading volume, handling more than $1.1 trillion in trades and managing assets of over 15.3 trillion won ($11 billion). Founded in 1994, Military Bank is a financial instituti

Aug 13, 2025By Yi Whan-woo

Cryptocurrency