Many South Koreans are obsessed with cryptocurrencies. The country’s lawmakers? Not so much.
Korea’s individual investors have long had an affinity for supercharged financial wagers, says Tai-ki Lee, senior research fellow at the Korea Institute of Finance.
It punches above its weight. Among traditional currencies, only the U.S. dollar was used more than the Korean won to trade the major cryptocurrencies as of Jan. 11. After banning initial coin offerings in September, regulators have been mulling everything from shutting down local cryptocurrency exchanges to allowing them to operate under increased supervision. It’s unclear whether the justice ministry’s proposal to shut down the exchanges will be approved by other government ministries and parliament. 