Virtual Asset Committee: "Safeguards Such as Internal Control Standards for Exchanges Needed"

First Virtual Asset Committee Meeting of the Year

During this year's first meeting of the Virtual Asset Committee, participants pointed out the need to introduce safeguards such as internal control standards for exchanges.

The Financial Services Commission announced that at 10 a.m. on March 4, 2026, it held the '1st Virtual Asset Committee Meeting of 2026' at the Seoul Government Complex, where discussions were held on the main points of the government’s review of the Digital Asset Basic Act (Phase 2 of virtual asset legislation). The Virtual Asset Committee consists of officials from the Financial Services Commission, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and seven private sector members.

On this day, committee members emphasized the need for safety mechanisms such as establishing internal control standards and IT/security standards for virtual asset exchanges, as well as imposing strict liability for damages even in the absence of fault. These measures are intended to institutionally ensure the reliability and transparency of the market.

The committee also discussed the necessity of standards for ownership dispersion of virtual asset exchanges and the bank-centered (50%+1 share) issuance of stablecoins. In addition, members agreed on the need to revise virtual asset terminology in the Virtual Asset User Protection Act to align with global standards and to establish a regulatory framework for digital business operators so that a variety of business models can be pursued domestically.

Furthermore, the committee reviewed the progress and future plans regarding the recent 'Bithumb erroneous payment incident.' Opinions were shared that, through emergency response inspections by the Financial Services Commission, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), and the Digital Asset eXchange Alliance (DAXA), compensation for damages should be facilitated, and that internal controls at exchanges should be improved through self-regulation, requiring the establishment of robust systems. The necessity of ensuring the institutional effectiveness of the Digital Asset Basic Act was also mentioned.

Based on the discussions held at this meeting, the Financial Services Commission plans to promote improvements in DAXA’s self-regulatory internal control standards and conduct consultations between the government and the ruling party for the enactment of relevant laws.

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