South Korea has advanced a three-part digital-finance program covering crypto accounts for about 3,500 companies, legal recognition for tokenized securities, and deposit-token trials involving nine banks, marking a shift away from the country's long reliance on retail crypto trading.
Corporate Crypto Access Opens Up
Under a Financial Services Commission roadmap, about 2,500 listed companies and approximately 1,000 corporations registered as professional investors are eligible to open real-name bank accounts linked to crypto exchanges. Since 2017, Korean companies have been unable to trade virtual assets through local exchanges because banks would not provide the required real-name accounts.
The pilot includes an annual investment ceiling equal to 5% of a company's equity capital, with purchases limited to the 20 largest cryptocurrencies by market value across South Korea's five major exchanges. Corporate access also creates demand for regulated custody, with BitGo Korea securing VASP registration on Aug. 18 to develop custody services for institutions.
Tokenized Securities Framework
The National Assembly passed amendments to the Electronic Securities Act and Capital Markets Act on Jan. 15, 2026, establishing a legal route for issuing and trading tokenized securities. The measures take effect on Feb. 4, 2027.
Under the amended law, distributed ledgers can serve as legally recognized records for securities issuance. Issuers must follow registration procedures involving the Korea Securities Depository. Samsung SDS has already won a contract to build a production-ready token-securities platform for KSD, with completion expected by February 2027.
Project Hangang Deposit-Token Trials
The Bank of Korea has developed a separate payment layer through Project Hangang, combining wholesale central-bank money with deposit tokens issued by commercial banks. During Phase I, about 80,000 of 100,000 invited users opened wallets and completed approximately 118,000 payment transactions.
Phase II launched in March 2026 with nine banks, adding BNK Kyongnam Bank and iM Bank to the original seven. Deposit tokens will support government payments, AI-agent transactions, and tokenized-asset settlement.
Why This Matters Globally
South Korea's approach places tokenized instruments inside its existing securities system, similar to the SEC's position that tokenized securities remain securities. The Korean framework requires KSD to handle formal registration rather than treating blockchain records as a separate unregulated system.
The shift signals that South Korea is building institutional infrastructure for digital assets, moving beyond the retail trading focus that has dominated its crypto market for nearly a decade.
