South Korean financial authorities plan to ban companies from investing in stablecoins.

The South Korean Financial Services Commission is currently drafting "Guidelines for Corporate Virtual Currency Trading," which will exclude stablecoins from the scope of investment permits. These guidelines aim to allow listed corporations and professional investment registered corporations to conduct digital asset trading for investment or financial purposes. To prevent disorderly investment in the early stages of the market, the authorities have decided to exclude USDT, USDC, and other USD-denominated stablecoins from the permitted scope. One reason for this exclusion is that the current South Korean Foreign Exchange Transaction Law does not recognize stablecoins as a means of external payment. Including stablecoins in the investment permit scope would contradict the existing legal system, effectively allowing companies to use stablecoins for trade and other commercial purposes. The South Korean National Assembly is currently reviewing an amendment to the Foreign Exchange Transaction Law, which proposes to recognize stablecoins as a means of payment; this bill was proposed last October. It is understood that some listed companies with a high proportion of trade have requested that stablecoins be included in the permitted scope so that they can use stablecoins for foreign exchange hedging. Even if excluded from the guidelines, companies can still trade stablecoins through personal wallets or overseas exchanges. Industry insiders revealed that the relevant working group has completed its work, but the release time of the guidelines is linked to the legislative process of the Basic Law on Digital Assets.