South Korea Finance Chairman Supports Bill Which Could Push Cryptocurrency into Institutional Sphere

South Korean Financial Services Commission Chairman Sungsoo Eun announced that he would support the introduction of an exchange reporting system for cryptocurrency exchanges in the country. This position was part of a report sent to National Assembly, South Korea’s legislative body, ahead of a hearing scheduled for tomorrow to address an amendment to the Special Financial Information Act .

He elaborated that the introduction of such a system along with legal revisions would increase transparency of the cryptocurrency industry. Currently cryptocurrencies are seen as part of a slippery industry that is hard to lock down, run by people even harder to reach at times. The introduction of the system could also raise the industry to the institutional sphere.

The amendment to be discussed tomorrow at National Assembly would introduce a reporting system for businesses that handle or transact with cryptocurrencies and would strengthen the obligations of anti-money laundering in those businesses. The new chairman concedes that changes will need to be made to current laws because of the inevitable use of cryptocurrencies on a broader scale in times to come.

“It is true that there are active discussions about the possibility of virtual currency and blockchain utilization as a means of payment,” Chairman Eun said.

In an earlier submission to National Assembly, however, he did decry the burden of cryptocurrency transactions on law enforcers such as himself. He is most worried about money laundering and increased speculation of the value of cryptocurrencies as a side effect of allowing the ongoing use of them.