South Korea Overhauls Digital Finance for Institutional Crypto Access

The Financial Services Commission is opening real-name bank accounts to roughly 3,500 listed companies and professional investors, marking the first time corporate entities have been permitted to trade virtual assets on local exchanges since 2017. While the pilot remains controlled—limiting annual investments to 5% of a company’s equity capital and restricting purchases to the 20 largest cryptocurrencies—it provides a crucial bridge for businesses to enter the market. To support this demand, regulated custody infrastructure is already taking root, evidenced by BitGo Korea securing registration from the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit.

Simultaneously, the legal framework for tokenized assets is maturing. With amendments to the Electronic Securities Act and Capital Markets Act set to take effect in February 2027, the Korea Securities Depository will integrate distributed ledgers into the official securities system. This ensures that tokenized assets remain under the purview of existing financial regulations. Complementing these efforts, the Bank of Korea’s Project Hangang has expanded to nine banks. By testing programmable deposit tokens for government payments and AI-driven transactions, the central bank aims to create a unified ledger where tokenized bonds and commercial deposits operate seamlessly, mirroring broader international efforts to modernize settlement systems.