Within a week of today, South Korea will apply its ban on anonymous bank accounts used in digital currency trading. At the same time, six local banks will issue new business accounts that follow your global 'Know Your Customers' standards.
According to several reports released on Tuesday, the organizers of the Korea approved the ban on anonymous digital currency transactions via anonymous virtual bank accounts also in the country. To speak more accurately, the long-awaited move will not allow traders to deposit in their portfolios on local currency exchanges until their names are matched to their bank deposit accounts on those platforms.
At the same time, at least six Korean banks will issue new commercial accounts for digital currency transactions on Jan. 30. Banks will also provide these accounts with a name matching system between bank accounts and special accounts for digital currency platforms. Existing anonymous digital accounts will be blocked on the same day, Deputy Chairman of the Financial Services Commission Kim Yong-beom told reporters today.
On the other hand, the six banks will include the NHK, the Industrial Bank of Korea and Shinhan, the second largest financial institution in Korea. The implementation of Tadawul's "real name" system of digital trading platforms will require the sharing of transactions with its banks. The movement is said to be part of the government's ongoing scrutiny of "speculative investments" by a large part of Korean society in the areas of digital currencies.
While the Korean Justice Ministry has called for a total ban on digital currency trading and trading platforms, lawmakers and other regulators have rejected this hard-line approach. The South Korean presidential office stressed the issue, stressing that the comprehensive ban is one of the many measures being considered to regulate the digital currency sector.
The announcement by the South Korean government on Monday refers to a policy that is unlikely to include such a blanket ban, which will now extend to non-Korean citizens and anonymous trading only. "No one, including the government, can guarantee the value of the digital currency," Kim Yong-beom said today. "Given the very volatile nature of these currencies, we should be cautious when making investment decisions," he said.
This news will be an outlet for both digital currency issuers and their trading platforms. According to South Korea's Yonhap, the main trading platform of Bithumb welcomes the new government's policy, saying in a statement: