Korea Insurance Institute Denies Report It Will Invest 15% of Reserves in Bitcoin

Ha Tae-kyung, head of the Korea Insurance Institute, denied recent claims that the organization plans to invest 15% of its reserves in Bitcoin.

The institute is a non-profit private corporation with no government capital, not a public institution funded by the state, Ha said on April 17. He also said no specific Bitcoin allocation has been determined. Speculation had circulated in the industry that the institute would put 15% of government budget money and public funds into Bitcoin.

Ha also rejected claims about the size of any investment. He said he had never stated that the institute would hold 15% of its reserves in Bitcoin.

Still, the institute's plan to hold Bitcoin at the corporate level is real, he added. It is in the early stages of running a committee to draft guidelines for that effort.

The Korea Insurance Institute has begun working-level procedures to become a corporate Bitcoin holder. On March 20, it formed a Digital Asset Deliberation Committee and began phased preparations to acquire Bitcoin.

The move followed a decision by the Financial Services Commission in May last year to allow non-profit corporations, including law enforcement agencies, designated donation organizations and university foundations, to open real-name accounts for virtual assets. The regulatory easing made it possible for institutions to hold digital-asset wallets, laying the groundwork for investment at the institutional level.

The Digital Asset Deliberation Committee will focus on building institutional safeguards for potential future contingencies. Its top priorities are establishing operating guidelines, building a risk-management framework, setting accounting and tax standards, and designing internal controls.