Institutional Financial Firms Also Enter NFT... Will Serve as a Bridge to the Real Economy

NFT ART 101 Conference

On the 17th, the 'NFT ART 101' conference was held at Dragon City in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Lee Myunghwan lifehwan@

[Asia Economy Reporter Myunghwan Lee] Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are expected to serve as a bridge between virtual assets and the real economy.

Yuri Lee, Vice President of Gidac, stated at the 'NFT ART 101' conference held on the morning of the 17th at the Dragon City Grand Ballroom in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, "At a time when domestic and international interest and expectations for the digital finance industry are high, we need to return to basics and reconsider the value and utility of digital assets and the essence of blockchain."

Vice President Lee pointed out that as the virtual asset market rapidly expands, institutional financial companies are increasingly participating. He emphasized, "The market capitalization of digital assets was 55 trillion won as of the end of last year, and the number of members of virtual asset exchanges has reached 15 million, indicating that many citizens are trading. Domestic commercial banks and securities firms are also engaging in custody business and partnerships for digital financial services."

Professor Youngmi Ko of Soongsil University Law School spoke about the financial legal issues of NFTs. Professor Ko said, "It is half true and half false that there are no regulations related to NFTs," clarifying that "there are no regulations specialized for NFTs."

Professor Ko explained, "Whether an NFT is a virtual asset is difficult to determine uniformly and should be decided according to the form of NFT issuance." According to her explanation, NFTs generally considered as investment or payment means are regarded as virtual assets. She added, "The Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information defines virtual assets as 'electronic certificates that have economic value and can be electronically traded or transferred,' and according to this, NFTs are virtual assets." From the purpose of this law, NFTs used as payment means can be subject to regulations to prevent money laundering and financing of criminal activities.

Meanwhile, at the event co-hosted by Art Token, Asia Economy, Ground X, Soongsil University, and law firm Daeryuk Aju, discussions were held on the integration and activation of NFTs with culture and arts. In the morning session, a presentation titled 'NFT Market, Present and Future' was conducted under the moderation of lawyer Jaekyung Lee.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.