South Korea plans to impose stricter oversight on local stablecoins and real-world asset tokens by extending foreign exchange regulations and introducing tougher custody requirements.
South Korea Tightens Rules on Local Stablecoins, RWA tokens: Seoul Economic Daily
9 April 2026 - 09:10 CEST
Lawmakers have proposed treating stablecoins pegged to the Korean won as foreign currency, according to the Seoul Economic Daily. The move would bring them under existing capital controls to reduce risks of capital flight and improve monitoring of cross-border flows.
Tokenized real-world assets would require custody in trusts to protect investors and clarify ownership rights. These RWA tokens would also fall under the regulatory framework that applies to traditional finance firms.
South Korea ranks among the world’s most active crypto markets. Digital asset trading volume reached $663bn in the second half of 2025, second only to the US.
The government is also piloting a crypto-linked payment project to allow the central bank better visibility over digital currency deposits.
