South Korea's Financial Services Commission (FSC) is finalizing guidelines to allow corporations and professional investors to trade cryptocurrencies, reversing a prohibition that has been in place since 2017. The ban was originally imposed due to concerns over money laundering and speculative excess.
The new regulatory framework, expected to be finalized in January or February 2026, will permit listed companies and licensed professional investors to allocate up to 5% of their equity capital to crypto assets. This move is projected to unlock tens of trillions of won in potential institutional capital. For example, internet giant Naver, with 27 trillion won ($18.4 billion) in equity, could theoretically purchase a significant amount of Bitcoin.
Access will be tightly controlled. Investments will be restricted to the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization and must be executed through South Korea's five largest regulated exchanges. The FSC is also implementing execution rules to slow down large orders, aiming to reduce market volatility.
This policy shift is part of a broader recalibration of South Korea's digital asset strategy. The government is simultaneously exploring the integration of dollar-pegged stablecoins like Tether's USDT and laying the groundwork for a won-denominated stablecoin. Furthermore, momentum is building for the approval of domestic spot crypto ETFs, which would further normalize digital assets within the country's financial system.
The long-term ban had created a market dominated by retail traders, a sharp contrast to markets like the U.S. where institutional players drive most volume. While the industry has welcomed the policy reversal, it has criticized the proposed exposure limits as being more conservative than those in the U.S., Japan, Hong Kong, or the EU. Some argue these strict caps could hinder the development of sophisticated crypto treasury strategies.
The final guidelines are tied to the forthcoming Digital Asset Basic Act, with implementation expected in early 2025. If legislative timelines hold, corporate crypto trading desks could be active before the end of 2026.
