South Korea Financial Services Commission has finalized guidelines that will allow non-profit corporations and registered virtual asset exchanges to dispose of virtual assets, supported by the issuance of real-name accounts for sales and new controls to address anti-money laundering and conflicts of interest. It also discussed and advanced proposed revisions to exchanges’ listing best practice guidelines aimed at reducing sharp price moves immediately after listing. For non-profit corporations, disposal will initially be limited to entities subject to external audit that have operated for at least five years, with an internal deliberation body required to pre-review the appropriateness of donations and liquidation plans. Donated virtual assets must be traded on at least three Korean won-based exchanges and must be liquidated into cash immediately upon donation, with donations and transfers routed through local Korean won-based exchanges and strengthened checks on transaction purpose and origin of funds. For exchanges, only virtual asset service providers registered under the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information may sell virtual assets, and only to cover operating expenses, with sales limited to top 20 assets by market capitalization across five Korean won-based exchanges, daily sale limits (such as under 10% of planned sale volume), and a ban on self-trading on the exchange’s own platform; board approval, pre-disclosure, and post-disclosure of results and use of proceeds are required. Listing best practice revisions include securing a minimum circulating volume before trading begins, restricting market orders for a period after trading starts, and requiring exchanges to set standards to prevent indiscriminate listings of “zombie coins” and “meme coins”; core elements are expected to be reflected in a potential comprehensive virtual asset regulatory bill. Measures to support issuance of real-name virtual asset sales accounts for eligible non-profits and exchanges will be implemented from June, while the revised listing best practices will apply to virtual assets listed after June 1. The Financial Services Commission and the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit plan to establish customer due diligence measures for these transactions within May, and the Commission aims to announce a second-half-of-year plan for issuing real-name accounts to listed companies and corporate professional investors.
South Korea Financial Services Commission 2025-05-02
South Korea Financial Services Commission finalizes June rules for non-profit and exchange virtual asset sales and tightens listing best practices
South Korea's Financial Services Commission finalized guidelines for non-profit corporations and registered virtual asset exchanges to dispose of virtual assets, backed by real-name accounts and enhanced anti-money laundering controls. Disposal for non-profits is limited to audited entities operating for at least five years, with strict trading and liquidation requirements. Revised listing best practices aim to reduce price volatility post-listing and prevent indiscriminate listings, starting in June.