South Korea’s Crypto Cap: 5% of Equity, 100% of Bureaucracy!

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🧊 In the shadow of bureaucratic inertia, the Republic of Korea has tentatively lifted its iron curtain over corporate crypto investment, a nine-year-old decree now crumbling under the weight of inevitability. 💸

The 5% Ceiling: A Token of Freedom in a Gilded Cage

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC), that stalwart of regulatory rigor, has drafted guidelines to allow listed companies and professional investors to trade crypto, a move that would see the overturn of a nine-year-old ban. 🧱 According to BusinessKorea, the FSC shared the draft with a public-private task force on January 6th, and according to a high-ranking financial industry official, authorities are expected to release the final guidelines between January and February. 📅

For nearly a decade, the specter of digital assets loomed over corporate boardrooms, their potential deemed too volatile, too perilous for the nation’s economic conscience. ⚖️ The country’s stance began to shift in February 2025, when the FSC announced a plan to gradually allow institutional participation in the space. The latest guidelines are a follow-up to this announcement. 🔄

South Korea easing up on corporate crypto investments hasn’t come without restrictions, however. Authorities have reportedly set an investment cap of 5% of equity capital, a meager allowance that companies can only deploy into coins inside the top 20 by market cap list. These assets will be determined based on the semi-annual market cap data sourced from the top five domestic digital asset exchanges. 🧠

Stablecoins tied to the US Dollar, like USDT and USDC, currently fall inside the top 20 list, but whether they will be included as permitted investment targets is still being discussed. 🤔 A question that hangs like a sword over the entire enterprise. ⚔️

While South Korea is planning on a 5% investment cap, other countries like the US or Japan have no such limits on corporate investing. One financial industry insider has raised concerns about the restriction, saying that “investment limit restrictions not found overseas could weaken capital inflow factors and prevent the emergence of virtual currency investment specialist companies.” 🧠 A paradox of progress, where freedom is measured in percentages. 📏

South Korea has also made other developments related to the crypto industry recently. The East Asian nation is planning to introduce digital asset spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) this year, looking to investment vehicles active in the US and Hong Kong as reference points. 📈 A mirror held up to the West, yet forever out of sync. 🪞

The FSC is also working on the next phase of its digital asset legislation, which could see the establishment of a regulatory framework for stablecoins. As reported by Bitcoinist, the bill has so far been delayed due to a dispute between the FSC and the Bank of Korea (BoK). 🧠 A duel of titans, where innovation is the collateral. ⚔️

The BoK, South Korea’s central bank, has been pushing for banks to own at least a 51% stake in any stablecoin issuer seeking approval in the country. While the FSC agrees that financial institutions should be involved in the issuance of won stablecoins, the regulator has raised concerns that a bank majority requirement could limit market participation and innovation. 🚧 A battle between caution and courage. 🧠

Bitcoin Price

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading around $90,600, down 2.5% over the past week. 📉 A testament to the volatility of a world where every dip is a crisis, and every surge a triumph. 💸

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2026-01-12 18:30