South Korean lawmakers are mulling over allowing domestic initial coin offerings, or ICOs, and the National Assembly reportedly made an official proposal to lift the ban on these cryptocurrency launches that was imposed in September last year.
The National Assembly suggested a legislative and policy recommendation to allow ICOs under the purview of investor protection provisions preparation, Business Korea reported. It remains to be seen whether this move would give a boost to the discussion on blockchain and ICOs between the government and the National Assembly.
Following the ICO ban in September last year, Korean blockchain startups were forced to relocate to crypto-friendly countries such as Singapore and Switzerland to do an ICO. This raises the cost for the companies and exposes investors to higher risks of fraud.
A leading market for cryptocurrency trading, South Korea adopted several regulatory measures to curb the excessive speculation in cryptocurrencies. Such moves caused concern in the cryptocurrency market, driving prices of Bitcoin and its peers down early this year.
The country has witnessed intense interest in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin with its citizens, both young and old, investing heavily in these with the hope of making a quick profit.
Late January, the government implemented regulations that require the use of real name accounts for digital currency trading.
The so-called special committee on the "fourth industrial revolution" blamed the government of failing to capitalize on the blockchain application expansion, which was a core area of focus in the regulatory reform sector, the Business Korea report said.
The special committee reportedly stressed on the need to form a task force including private experts in order to improve transparency of cryptocurrency trading and establish a healthy trade order.
The government was also urged to set up a new committee and build governance systems at its level in a bid to systematically make blockchain policy and efficiently provide industrial support.
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Forex News
May 08, 2026 15:50 ET Manufacturing and services sector survey results and labor market data from main economies were the highlight on the economics news front this week. Factory orders and jobs report dominated the news flow in the U.S. Similarly, industrial production data from German garnered attention in Europe. In Asia, purchasing managers’ survey results from China and the central bank decision from Australia were in focus.