"While the US is accelerating... Stablecoins are essential for competitiveness"

'Parliamentary Forum for the Enactment of the Digital Asset Basic Law'

"Korea needs to accelerate digital asset legislation"

"Urgent need for prompt stablecoin legislation"

Financial authorities "Watching Trump administration's movements"

"The direction of US virtual asset policy has been changing rapidly since the recent inauguration of the Trump administration. I believe it's time to prepare legislation focusing not only on protecting virtual asset users but also on industry development."

Democratic Party Representative Yoo Dong-soo made these remarks during his opening address at the 'Parliamentary Forum for the Enactment of the Digital Asset Basic Law' held at the National Assembly Members' Office Building in Yeouido, Seoul on the 5th. Following the first forum held early last month, today's second forum was organized by 14 Democratic Party members of the National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee and the Korea Fintech Industry Association to discuss the direction of stablecoin regulation in Korea.

Democratic Party Representative Min Byung-deok emphasized the need to define the terminology as 'digital assets' rather than 'virtual assets' and urged swift legislation during his opening remarks. Rep. Min said, "The term 'virtual assets' has a negative connotation, so I think it's necessary to define the terminology as 'digital assets'," adding, "I have already introduced a bill related to this."

Rep. Min further pointed out, "While all political parties are interested in digital assets, the government is complacent, trying to stay within the existing financial market," and stressed that "the government should more actively pursue the institutionalization of digital assets to keep pace with the global market."

Stablecoins lead financial innovation... "Urgent need for prompt regulation"

The following presentations discussed the potential for financial innovation using stablecoins and legislative tasks for Korea based on overseas cases. Seo Byung-yoon, Director of DSRV Future Finance Research Institute, explained, "Stablecoins have the advantage of being much faster and cheaper for remittances, and payments can be made anytime, 24 hours a day, with just a smartphone." Unlike card payments, stablecoin payments can be transferred between wallets via the internet, greatly improving financial accessibility.

Director Seo emphasized, "If Korea actively utilizes stablecoins, financial services will develop further," adding that "it can be the foundation for Korea to leap forward as an Asian fintech hub." He continued, "Trade, finance, and content services will be activated through stablecoins," and added, "appropriate regulations are needed for this."

Kim Hyo-bong, an attorney at law firm Bae, Kim & Lee, said, "With the Trump administration in power, the 'Stablecoin Act' bill has been introduced in the US, and there is a high possibility that the bill will be passed quickly," adding, "As major countries around the world are rushing to establish stablecoin regulations, we also need prompt legislation, referencing their cases."

In particular, Attorney Kim urged, "Singapore and Hong Kong, which are introducing leading regulations in Asia, could be our real competitors," and "we need to prepare legislation that can secure global competitiveness by referring to the cases of these two countries."

FSS "Preparing stablecoin legislation is an important task"

In the discussion held at the end of the forum, industry figures and financial authorities shared their thoughts on establishing stablecoin regulations.

Professor Lee Jung-sik of Seoul National University Law School, a member of the Financial Services Commission's Virtual Asset Committee, argued, "With the emergence of the Trump administration, the US has shifted from central bank digital currency (CBDC) to stablecoins," adding, "Korea should also prepare for this, and stablecoin legislation should be the core of the second phase of legislative discussions."

However, Professor Lee added, "Stablecoin issuers should be banks, and a conservative approach starting with fiat currency-based stablecoins is necessary."

Lee Seok, Director of the Virtual Asset Supervision Department at the Financial Supervisory Service, also agreed on the need for stablecoin legislation. Director Lee assessed, "Interest in virtual assets overall has increased since President Trump's inauguration, and accordingly, the need to establish stablecoin regulations has also increased."

He explained, "Stablecoins are differentiated from other virtual assets in that there is a demand for payment and settlement. They have convenience and speed in terms of payment and settlement, but the difficulty in monitoring from the regulatory authorities' perspective is cited as a challenge," adding, "How to harmonize these aspects is an important task." He then revealed, "The FSS determined that it is important to prepare stablecoin regulatory measures in accordance with the movements of the Trump administration, and conducted separate discussions on this in February."