South Korean government authorities have admitted to knowingly postponing
crypto regulation in the country. The officials feared that doing so,
would be interpreted by consumers as legitimizing the crypto markets.
The South Korean authorities can be excused for having such fears.
Cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology are uncharted territories
in terms of regulation by governments. Giving guidelines instantly
would have caused a frenzy of excitement in the crypto-markets
that could have been unhealthy for everyone concerned.
Less than a week ago, South Korean authorities announced that
the country will be regulating cryptocurrency exchanges in the same
manner they regulate commercial banks in the country.
The Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KFIU) will be spearheading
the efforts together with local financial regulators.
The South Korean authorities have been waiting for a bill to
pass that will give the said local authorities the jurisdictional powers
needed to regulate cryptocurrency exchanges.
The bill was as a result of financial authorities requesting the
government back in September, to regulate the crypto markets
to protect all investors and increase the security in the space.
One needs only to refer to the the hacking of the Coincheck
exchange back in March and most recently, Coinrail,to understand
their concerns in terms of cyber security.
CHEERS