The Financial Services Commission of South Korea has finalized guidelines that will allow domestic companies and professional investors to allocate up to 5% of their equity into cryptocurrency investments, starting in late 2026. This policy shift, part of the government's 2026 Economic Growth Strategy, ends a nine-year ban and is expected to unlock billions in dormant corporate treasury funds, positioning South Korea alongside the US, Hong Kong, and Canada in institutional crypto participation.
The new rules permit investment in the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market cap on Korea's five major regulated exchanges, though the inclusion of stablecoins like USDT remains under discussion. This move fundamentally changes a market where retail activity previously accounted for nearly 100% of trading, with capital flight having reached $52 billion.
Concurrently, the cryptocurrency market is experiencing significant volatility. United States spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have shed over $1 billion in combined outflows since January 6th, a sharp reversal from the $1.17 billion in inflows seen just days earlier. This extends a cautious tone from the end of 2025, when crypto exchange-traded products shed $446 million over the Christmas period.
Analysts suggest this institutional shift in South Korea creates guaranteed demand for crypto infrastructure, particularly security and launchpad solutions. This has spotlighted several presale projects, including DeepSnitch AI (DSNT), which has raised over $1.16 million. The project offers live AI security tools like AuditSnitch for contract risk assessment, and its token price has increased nearly 120% to $0.03401 during its presale. Rumors of imminent Tier 1 exchange listings and a major strategic announcement are circulating.
Other projects highlighted include EscapeHub (ESCAPE), a multi-chain token launchpad that has raised over $400,000 and passed audits from firms like Hacken, and HuntFi (HUFI), a move-to-earn game on the TON blockchain with over 10,000 active players. The news is also being framed against the challenges faced by projects like Bitcoin Hyper, whose growth is tied to Bitcoin's liquidity and sentiment, which has been dampened by the recent ETF outflows.
