South Korea’s stablecoin bill stalled due to regulatory dispute

Disagreements among regulators over stablecoin issuers have delayed the adoption of key legislation until at least next year

30.12.2025 - 10:00

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Key points:

South Korean authorities have not agreed on who will be allowed to issue stablecoins.
The Bank of Korea and the financial regulator disagree on how to license issuers.
The adoption of the digital asset law has been postponed until 2026.

The development of a law regulating stablecoins in South Korea has been suspended due to a dispute between key agencies over which organizations should be allowed to issue them. The disagreements concern both the ownership structure of issuers and the supervisory model, which is hindering the progress of the initiative.

According to Yonhap, the Digital Asset Basic Law prepared by the Financial Services Commission sets out strict requirements for reserves and disclosure, but its consideration has been postponed.

Regulators’ positions

According to the draft, stablecoin issuers must hold reserve assets in bank deposits or government bonds and transfer 100% of reserves to licensed depositories. These measures are aimed at protecting investors in the event of issuer bankruptcy.

However, the Bank of Korea insists that the issuance of stablecoins should only be allowed to consortiums where banks control at least 51% of the capital. The agency believes that this will reduce systemic risks.

The Financial Services Commission opposes strict ownership thresholds. The regulator fears that such restrictions will drive technology companies out of the market and slow down innovation. The dispute also touched on the need to create a separate body for licensing issuers.

In November 2025, the South Korean financial regulator completed large-scale inspections of the largest crypto exchanges, including Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and GOPAX. As a result, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) began preparing personal and institutional sanctions for AML violations, including large fines and liability for individual employees.

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