The South Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) has created the Financial Innovation Bureau to see its begin to grow crypto sector.
The new approach to cryptocurrencies has been developed to make sure consumer protection and help the country keep pace with rising financial creation.
The announcement of the new division follows a turbulent strategy from the South Korean regulators. Last month South Korea’s Supreme Court ruled that bitcoin is a legally recognizable asset, overturning an earlier decision from a lower court, and last week, South Korea brought in new anti-money transaction rules for cryptocurrency settlement.
The creation of the Financial Innovation Bureau will help attend South Korea’s digital industry. It will be tasked with examining and looking closely to the policy initiatives for financial creations, such as financial services using fintech or big data, and responses to new developments and challenges such as cryptocurrencies.
Industry observers welcome the development. In a press release the South Korea-based FANTOM Foundation said: “I think Korea can be an ideal incubator to test drive new virtual coins and their blockchain systems.” Also stating:
High-speed internet infrastructure is
already here, unparalleled to any other
country in the world. And the Korean
people are very adoptive of technology.
Now it is the government’s role to establish
a favourable environment for virtual coins
and their blockchains.
South Korea is an important market for cryptos’ it has rapidly become a important cryptocurrency hub and is home to Bithumb, one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges. Bithumb is pushing a global expansion strategy recently opening an office in London and establishing a subsidiary in Singapore.