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South Korean Banks Surge into Digital Assets Amid Regulatory Shifts

Crypto

Business Honor
05 August, 2025

South Korean lenders are quickly moving into the digital assets market, anticipating regulatory reforms.

South Korea's top banks are rushing into digital assets, signaling a widespread transformation in the country's financial landscape. Shinhan, Woori, KEB Hana, and KB Kookmin are establishing dedicated crypto teams to develop crypto custody products, stablecoins, digital wallets, and blockchain partnerships. Woori Bank for instance, launched its Digital Asset Team under its New Business Alliance Platform Department. The team will be responsible for studying and implementing digital asset services and has even rebooted an earlier crypto project by entering into an agreement with a blockchain startup company. Woori is also gearing up to enter the stablecoin business, planning to create a consortium with other companies.

KB Kookmin Bank has gone a more institutional route, introducing in June a Digital Asset Response Council to oversee coordinated efforts at its affiliates in credit card, insurance, and securities businesses. The move is intended to respond rapidly to policy shifts and to seek out strategic alliances in the crypto market. This foray into digital assets follows decades of regulatory disappointments. The regulations by the Moon Jae-in government and ICO ban relegated many projects to the delay. Things changed with the new government led by President Lee Jae-myung, though, as regulations leaned more towards backing blockchain innovation, and banks are eager to benefit from the change. South Korean legislators are now considering reforms that would give legal rights to crypto custody services, stablecoin issuance, and digital asset exchanges by conventional financial institutions.

In anticipation of these reforms, banks such as Shinhan and KB Kookmin are not only establishing internal crypto teams but are also submitting several trademark requests for stablecoins tied to both the Korean won as well as other currencies. Regional banks such as K Bank and Busan Bank are also increasing their activity, establishing blockchain dedicated teams to study the use of distributed ledger technologies in finance.