South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) has issued a warning to domestic securities firms brokering overseas-listed Bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs), stating that such activities may be in violation of local laws. The notice, issued on January 12, 2024, highlights potential breaches of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act and the Capital Markets Act.
The FSC is in the process of creating a regulatory regime for the emerging industry, but has expressed concerns about the brokerage services for these foreign ETFs. The regulator has also announced plans to conduct a comprehensive review of its regulations, with the aim of aligning them with international practices.
In response to the warning, several local securities firms, including Samsung Group’s securities division and Mirae Asset Securities, have reportedly halted their services for these foreign spot bitcoin ETFs in various countries, including Canada and the U.S.
This warning follows the FSC’s renewed ban on crypto investments by financial institutions. In December 2017, South Korean regulators implemented emergency measures prohibiting institutional cryptocurrency investments. The country has since embarked on a comprehensive crypto regulation initiative, which is set to be enforced by July.
Despite its current stance on spot crypto ETFs, South Korea has recently announced plans for the declaration of crypto assets by public officials. The Ethics Policy Division has disclosed that it will publish the assets held by approximately 5,800 public officials.
Meanwhile, on January 10, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the launch of 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs from several issuers, including Grayscale, BlackRock, and others. These ETFs quickly attracted significant interest from the community, recording a trading volume that surpassed $4 billion on their first day of trading.
However, major traditional firms in the U.S., such as Vanguard, are also restricting their customers from purchasing these Bitcoin ETFs, stating that these investments do not align with their investment philosophy.
This News Article was automatically generated by Bob the Bot (AI)
| Information | Details |
|---|---|
| Geography | Asia |
| Countries | 🇨🇦 🇺🇸 |
| Sentiment | neutral |
| Relevance Score | 1 |
| People | None |
| Companies | U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Samsung Group’s securities division, South Korea’s Financial Services Commission, Mirae Asset Securities, Vanguard |
| Currencies | Bitcoin |
| Securities | None |
