South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) published its 2026 inspection plan, setting out a cross-sector programme that concentrates inspection resources on financial consumer protection and measures intended to support financial market stability. The plan also elevates scrutiny of firms’ internal control frameworks, corporate governance arrangements and preparedness in areas seen as vulnerable. Across all financial sectors, inspection work will be organised around five thematic areas: group-wide internal controls across the financial product life cycle; inspections of headquarters and branches assessed as posing higher consumer risks; unfair business practices affecting low-income consumers and vulnerable groups; internal controls for reliable digital transactions including consumer data protection and hacking prevention; and consumer-harming crimes with a focus on firms suspected of money laundering or vulnerable to related offences. Governance-focused work will check whether firms operate internal controls in line with the responsibilities map, and soundness-oriented work will monitor preparedness for newly introduced businesses and systems and take pre-emptive action where consumer harm could arise. Ahead of the implementation of a Phase 2 legislative initiative following the enforcement of the Act on the Protection of Virtual Asset Users, the FSS will assess virtual asset service providers through on-site consulting and will guide them to strengthen information technology safety and internal controls.

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