South Korea Plans Year-End Foreign Exchange Law Revision for Stablecoin Payments

South Korea’s central bank and government are pursuing a year-end revision of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act that would regulate stablecoins and similar digital assets as payment methods.

The Bank of Korea is coordinating with the government on oversight of cross-border digital-asset transactions. It is also preparing systems to monitor virtual-asset activity, including reporting through the foreign-exchange electronic network.

The effort follows an earlier proposal for operators handling cross-border virtual-asset transfers to register and report transactions. South Korea’s Ministry of Economy and Finance opened public consultation Oct. 7 (Oct. 6 ET) on an amendment to the law’s enforcement decree, which would define the businesses covered for transfers between South Korea and overseas markets.