Summary

  • Rep. Yoo Dong-soo said the government’s Digital Asset Basic Act bill will soon be submitted to the National Assembly and pledged to speed legislation based on bipartisan agreement.
  • He said securing the competitiveness of the digital asset industry is directly tied to the country’s financial competitiveness, and warned that failing to preserve that edge could weaken South Korea’s influence in traditional financial markets.
  • Yoo said the key tasks are balancing industry promotion and user protection while managing risk, and pledged to reflect the seminar’s discussions in the legislative process to strengthen trust in the market and industry competitiveness.

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Yoo Dong-soo, chair of the National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee, said he would speed legislation on the Digital Asset Basic Act based on bipartisan agreement to secure its swift enactment.

Speaking in a congratulatory address at a Nov. 12 seminar titled “Digital Assets: The Era of Institutions Is Coming” at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building in Seoul’s Yeouido district, Yoo said the government’s version of the Digital Asset Basic Act would be submitted to the National Assembly soon. He added that he would work to ensure the basic law is properly prepared based on agreement between the ruling and opposition parties.

Yoo also emphasized the committee’s bipartisan cooperation. He said the Digital Asset Basic Act would be advanced after sufficient discussions between the two parties, in a way that takes into account both industry development and investor protection.

He stressed that securing the competitiveness of the digital-asset industry is directly tied to the country’s financial competitiveness. Citing the won’s roughly 2% share of the global currency market, Yoo said that if the industry fails to maintain its competitiveness, South Korea’s influence in traditional financial markets could also weaken.

As a core task for the Digital Asset Basic Act, Yoo pointed to balancing industry promotion and user protection. He said the law’s most important issue is finding a balance between growth and competitiveness on one hand and financial consumer protection on the other in determining how digital assets should be handled.

He added that as digital assets drive structural changes in the financial industry, an institutional foundation is needed to harness new technologies and manage the risks that accompany them. The aim, he said, is to establish a legal framework that supports the industry’s growth potential rather than simply introducing regulation.

Yoo also said opinions presented at the seminar would be reflected in the legislative process. He added that the day’s discussions would play an important role in shaping the Digital Asset Basic Act and would be incorporated to help secure trust in the market and strengthen the industry’s competitiveness.

Suehyeon Lee