South Korea to lift 9-year ban on corporate crypto investments

South Korean regulators plan to lift a nine-year ban on corporate crypto investments as the country continues to warm up to the digital asset space.

Summary

• South Korea’s FSC will allow listed firms and professional investors to invest up to 5% of their equity in the top 20 cryptocurrencies.
• Corporate trading is expected to begin by the end of 2026 following final approval.

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission has reportedly crafted new guidelines for listed corporations and professional investors, which are expected to be finalized by February, a Jan. 12 report from Seoul Economic Daily noted. Subsequently, corporations will be able to start making investments by the end of 2026.

According to the proposal, the framework will allow eligible firms to allocate up to 5% of their equity capital annually. However, these investments must be limited to the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization listed on Korea’s five major exchanges.

Meanwhile, discussions are ongoing on whether stablecoins such as USDT would be included as permissible investment assets under the new rules.

Although the shift was largely welcomed across the industry, some proponents are concerned that the investment cap may be excessive and could leave South Korea at a disadvantage compared to jurisdictions such as the United States, Japan, and the European Union, where no restrictions exist on corporate crypto holdings.

“Investment limits, which do not exist overseas, could weaken the inflow of funds and prevent the emergence of specialized virtual currency investment companies,” one industry insider was quoted as saying.

South Korea warms up to crypto

South Korea banned corporate crypto investments and Initial Coin Offerings in 2017. At the time, regulators were concerned that cryptocurrencies posed significant risks to the country’s financial stability, and framed crypto investments as “non-productive speculative” activity.

However, over the years, regulators have gradually softened their stance, and under a crypto-friendly administration led by President Lee Jae-myung, who took office in 2025, authorities have moved to re-integrate digital assets into the financial system.

Last year, South Korea started allowing non-profit organizations and crypto exchanges to liquidate crypto holdings for financial management purposes.

In the meantime, crypto-related rule-making has faced delays. As previously reported by crypto.news, the Digital Asset Basic Law, which would establish comprehensive standards for stablecoin issuance, custody, and investor protection, has been postponed to 2026.

Regulators are currently debating whether the oversight of stablecoin reserves should be handed to the FSC or the Bank of Korea, and which institutions should be permitted to issue won-pegged stablecoins under the upcoming regulatory framework.