Financial stability is a prerequisite to innovation and inclusive finance policies. FSC maintains close market monitoring for any signs of market volatility and works to ensure stability in the financial markets. There are risk factors originating from abroad and from within. FSC focuses on making our economy more resilient from external shocks, such as a disruption in the global supply chain, and supporting Korea’s material, component and equipment industries to help boost their global competitiveness. Internally, FSC is closely monitoring the trends in household debt and seeking reforms to corporate restructuring in order to prevent domestic risk factors from turning into systemic risks. Policies aimed at increasing financial stability also include enhancing fairness in the financial markets by introducing a comprehensive legal framework for the supervision of financial conglomerates, improving market discipline and promoting transparency in corporate disclosure and accounting practices.
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Jun 10, 2026
- FSC Chairman Holds Meeting with Financial Holding Companies to Discuss Ways to Bolster Cyber Defense Capacity in AX
- Chairman Lee Eog-weon of the Financial Services Commission held a meeting with the CEOs of five major financial holding companieson June 10 and discussed ways to effectively respond to cybersecurity threats and voice phishing (vishing) attacks in an era of AI transformation (AX). At the meeting, Chairman Lee and the heads of financial holding companies discussed the risk of cybersecurity threats posed by frontier AI and deepfake vishing scams and ways to effectively respond to these newly emerging digital threats to help propel AI transformation in the financial industry. In his opening remarks, Chairman Lee talked about both challenges and opportunities presented by AI transformation and pointed out major threats posed by frontier AI models, such as Claude Mythos, as well as deepfake vishing scams that take advantage of AI technology. In this regard, Chairman Lee said that the government has put in place diverse measures and policies intended to bolster the AI-driven defense capabilities against AI attacks. For instance, the network separation rule will be eased for financial companies for their AI cyber defense purposes, and the utility of the AI-based anti-phishing sharing analysis platform (ASAP) has been ramped up to more effectively detect and prevent newly emerging types of phishing attacks. Moreover, Chairman Lee said that the government is planning to quickly introduce the strict liability rule in the financial sector to make financial companies more responsible and remedies more effective for victims. To strengthen the financial industrys response capacity against newly emerging digital threats in an era of AI transformation, Chairman Lee asked the financial holding companies to take the following steps. First, in response to cyber threats posed by frontier AI, financial holding companies are urged to actively participate in AI cybersecurity tests prepared by the government and take follow-up steps as deemed necessary. In preparation for the complete lifti
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May 25, 2026
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Apr 06, 2026
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Apr 01, 2026
- Government Unveils 2026 Household Debt Management Plan Aimed at Decoupling of Finance from Real Estate Market
- Chairman Lee Eog-weon of the Financial Services Commission presided over the meeting on household debt management on April 1 with officials from related government ministries, financial institutions, and industry groups. At the meeting, officials discussed and introduced the governments household debt management plan for 2026. In order to put an end to excessive concentration of money and inflows of leveraged investments in the real estate market, FSC Chairman Lee said that it is critical to push for an effective decoupling of finance from the real estate market. In this regard, Chairman Lee said that the household debt management measures being introduced today will help to foster the conditions in the financial industry to make a great transition toward productive finance. Overview With the governments consistent efforts to contain the pace of household debt growth in recent years, the household debt to GDP ratiohas continued to decline since after 2021, which demonstrates that a gradual deleveraging is taking place in the household sector. In particular, a set of enhanced household debt management measures introduced in 2025 have contributed to the continuation of a downward stabilization trend despite the presence of interest rate cuts and housing market overheating. However, Koreas household debt to GDP ratiostill remains high compared to other major economies, and there is continuing presence of factors driving the growth of mortgage loans. Therefore, it is necessary for the government to continue to maintain a firm stance on household debt management. Especially against the backdrop of growing uncertainties in the real economy and financial markets, it is necessary to effectively address the potential risk of built-up leverage in the household sector. Key Measures a) Strengthening control over total volume of household debt growth In 2026, the government will continue to strictly manage the total volume of household debt growth in quantitative terms. The targ
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Mar 30, 2026
- Rules Change Proposed on VASPs to Strengthen Registration and Anti-money Laundering Requirements
- The Financial Services Commission proposed a set of rules change intended to strengthen the registration requirement and the anti-money laundering (AML) duty of virtual asset service providers (VASPs) on March 30. The revision proposal for the Enforcement Decree of the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information and its subordinate regulations address details regarding the entry rules of VASPs and the notification of sanctions imposed on retired employees. Moreover, the proposed rules change also deal with the strengthened AML duty (travel rule) of VASPs in their handling of virtual asset transfers. Key Revision Details a) Enhanced entry rules and registration requirements First, the scope of major shareholders falling under the scrutiny for VASPs entry registration will be expanded to include largest shareholder, CEO, controlling shareholder, and the CEO and company representative if the largest shareholder is a corporate entity. Second, VASPs need to meet the following financial soundness and social credibility requirements for registration. VASPs (a) should maintain a debt ratio of 200 percent or below as shown in the most recent quarter-end financial statements, (b) should not have been in default in the past three years, and (c) should not have been identified as an insolvent financial institution or have had its business license revoked in the past. The (chief) executive officers of VASPs need to meet specific qualifications prescribed under the Act on Corporate Governance of Financial Companies. The largest shareholders of VASPs (a) should demonstrate a debt ratio of 200 percent or below as shown in the most recent quarter-end financial statements, (b) should not have been a largest shareholder or a specially associated entity to an insolvent financial institution or a financial institution that has had its business license revoked previously, and (c) should meet specific qualifications prescribed under the Act on Corporate Governan
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Mar 30, 2026
- FSC Unveils Benchmark Rate Reform Plans to Ensure Consistent and Swift Transitions
- The Financial Services Commission announced benchmark rate reform plans intended to boost confidence in financial markets at the meeting held on March 30 with officials from related financial authorities and industry groups. FSC Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-young presided over the meeting and laid out the following three key principles for benchmark rate reform(a) swiftly improving confidence on benchmark rates, (b) minimizing potential impact on the market, and (c) strengthening protections for financial consumers. Key Details of Benchmark Rate Reform a) Promoting KOFR-basedtransactions in financial markets With the establishment of a central clearing system for KOFR-based overnight index swap (OIS) transactions, the government plans to speed up the adoption of KOFR in the market more quickly than previously planned. To this end, the previously planned KOFR-OIS target of 50 percent by June 2030 (via 10%p increase every year for five years) will be increased to 70 percent by June 2030 (via 15%p increase every year). For the period running from July 2026 until June 2027 (the second year), financial companies will need to meet the KOFR-OIS target of 25 percent (10% in the first year plus 15%p). There will be a new KOFR-FRN (Floating Rate Note) transactions target established (via administrative guidance from the Financial Supervisory Service in June 2026) to promote the adoption of KOFR in the FRN market. In the first year (from July 2026 to June 2027), banks will need to meet the KOFR-FRN target of 10 percent and increase their KOFR-FRN transactions every year by 10%p thereafter to meet the target of 50 percent by June 2031. For policy financial institutions (Korea Development Bank, Industrial Bank of Korea, and Export-Import Bank of Korea), the KOFR-FRN target will be set at 65 percent by June 2031, a 15%p higher than commercial banks. To meet this goal, in the first year (from July 2026 to June 2027), policy financial institutions will issue 25 percent or more of FRNs ba
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Mar 30, 2026
- Capital Market Rules Change Proposed to Strengthen Regulations on Disclosure of Treasury Share Holding Status
- The Financial Services Commission proposed capital market rules change on March 30 intended to promote the use of treasury shares by listed companies as a means to boost shareholder value in line with the mandatory cancellation of treasury shares promulgated under the recently revised Commercial Act. Under the revised Commercial Act, listed companies are required to cancel treasury shares within one year in principle (within one year and six months for treasury shares acquired prior to the revised law taking effect). For exceptional cases when the retention of treasury shares is deemed to be necessary for employee compensation or other management purposes, listed companies are required to obtain an approval for their retention/disposal plan from the general shareholders meeting. In this regard, the FSC proposes the following rules change to make sure a seamless implementation of the mandatory treasury cancellation requirement under the revised Commercial Act. First, all listed companies will be required to disclose their treasury stock retention status and disposal plans. Second, there will be regulatory reforms regarding the disposal of treasury shares by trust businesses, the issuance of exchangeable bonds backed by treasury shares, and the sale of treasury shares. First, the rules change is proposed to enhance transparency in the disclosure of listed companies treasury share retention and disposal plans and their actual implementation status, and to expand the application of the treasury share disclosure rule to all listed companies. Under the revised Commercial Act, companies are required to indicate in their treasury share retention and disposal plans the purpose of retention and/or disposal, retention status, retention period, and time for disposal. However, if a specific time for disposal is yet to be decided at the time of shareholders approval, it remains difficult for investors and ordinary shareholders to clearly understand the companys treasury share dis
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Mar 12, 2026
- Revised Rules on Telecom-based Financial Fraud to Bolster Response against Vishing Scams Involving Virtual Assets
- The Financial Services Commission announced that a revision bill for the Special Act on the Prevention of Loss Caused by Telecommunications-based Financial Fraud and Refund for Loss (the Act hereinafter) was passed by the National Assembly at the plenary session held on March 12. Background With vishing scams becoming more sophisticated, there is a growing number of cases in which scammers are stealing virtual assets from victims directly or using virtual assets for laundering the money stolen from victims. However, despite the fact that virtual asset exchange service providers are being exploited in such criminal activities, there was no legal foundation so far to effectively cut off the flow of criminal proceeds or provide remedies for victims. In this regard, the revised Act establishes a regulatory foundation to close the loophole for virtual asset exchange service providers and bolster remedies for vishing related loss and damage. Key Revision Details First, virtual asset exchange service providers will be required to have the same level of vishing prevention and damage and loss relief measures in place as in the case with financial companies. Unlike banks or securities companies that are required by law to regularly monitor suspicious transactions activities related to vishing scams, which allow them to take preventive measures, virtual asset exchange service providers are not obligated to follow such steps under the existing regulatory framework, which prevented them from taking swift actions in response to vishing scams. As such, the revised Act will make virtual asset exchange service providers subject to the same level of anti-vishing and damage and loss relief duty that is currently in place for financial companies. In this regard, virtual asset exchange service providers will be required to verify the purpose of virtual asset transactions, monitor suspicious transactions related to vishing scams, freeze account activities when suspected to be involved in
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Mar 03, 2026
- FSC Holds Meeting to Monitor Financial Market Conditions over Middle East Situation
- Chairman Lee Eog-weon of the Financial Services Commission presided over a meeting with officials from related authorities and financial institutions to check financial market conditions over the Middle East situation on March 3. At the meeting, officials went over the economic and financial market conditions ahead of the market opening of the day amid expanding geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East region. Officials also discussed ways to provide assistance to the small- and medium-sized exporters engaged in business operation in the conflict affected region. The sharp increase seen in international oil prices on the previous day appear to have subsided somewhat, and major stock markets are mostly trending lower or staying flat, while the price of gold and the value of USD are strengthening due to higher demand for safe assets. Since financial markets may experience expanded volatility depending on the developments of the Middle East situation with a potential impact on the real economy, officials shared the same view on the need to continue to stay vigilant and ensure close cooperation and concerted responses. Despite deepening uncertainty surrounding the Middle East, FSC Chairman Lee said that the Korean economy and its financial markets are equipped with strong fundamentals and that the government has sufficient policy capacity to deal with external uncertainties. In this regard, Chairman Lee said that it is important for market participants to remain confident and avoid hasty decisions or movements. Since ensuring stability in the economy and financial markets is a top priority, the government, the Bank of Korea, and the Financial Supervisory Service will maintain close coordination to monitor market situations and ensure prompt implementation of contingency plans (market stabilization programs worth KRW100 trillion-plus) when it becomes necessary. Additionally, to prevent a potential of unfair trading activities spreading on heightened market uncertainti
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Feb 25, 2026
- FSC Abolishes Caps on Whistleblower Rewards for Market Manipulation and Accounting Fraud
- The Financial Services Commission (FSC) will overhaul its whistleblower reward program to strengthen incentives for insiders to report unfair trading and accounting fraud. Under the current framework, payouts are capped at KRW 3 billion for unfair trading and KRW 1 billion for accounting fraud levels widely viewed as insufficient to encourage insiders to come forward. In addition, rewards are unavailable if reports are filed with other enforcement authorities, such as the National Police Agency. To sharpen incentives, the FSC will: (i) abolish all caps on whistleblower rewards; (ii) provide rewards of up to 30% of recovered illicit gains or penalties; and (iii) make whistleblowers eligible for rewards regardless of which government agency first receives the report. Key Measures 1. Uncapped Whistleblower Rewards for Market Manipulation and Accounting Fraud Under the current framework, even when a tip leads to the recovery of billions of won in illicit gains, rewards remain subject to fixed caps. Given that sophisticated offenses such as market manipulation and accounting fraud are often difficult to detect without insider information, the existing limits fail to adequately compensate informants for the risks involved, thereby weakening reporting incentives. The FSC will therefore abolish reward caps through amendments to the Enforcement Decrees under the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act (FSCMA) and the External Audit Act. The revisions reaffirm the governments commitment to ensuring that market manipulation and accounting fraud are detected without exception and subject to severe sanctions. 2. Rewards of Up to 30% of Recovered Gains or Penalties The current reward formula is complex, making it difficult for potential whistleblowers to estimate in advance how much they may receive. In addition, the bracket-based structure has resulted in reward payments that are not commensurate with the amount of recovered illicit gains. The revised framework wi
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Feb 23, 2026
- FSC Introduces Measures to Promote Sound Development of Mutual Savings Banks
- Chairman Lee Eog-weon of the Financial Services Commission held a meeting with the CEOs of twelve mutual savings banks and related organizations and discussed ways to promote sound development of mutual savings banks on February 23. A Summary of Remarks by FSC Chairman Amid an enduring risk of default originating from real estate market volatility, digital transition in the financial industry, and a polarization in the savings banks sector, it is now crucial to have a structural transformation in the industry for the survival and growth of savings banks. Against this backdrop, the FSC has prepared a set of measures to promote sound development of savings banks to facilitate their transition away from the short-term profit driven and community-centered operational model toward a more real economy-oriented and nationwide operational approach. In this regard, the financial intermediary function of savings banks should move away from real estate and collateral operations toward the real economy sector, such as SMEs, MMEs, and small merchants, in a more balanced way. To help savings banks retain their competitiveness amid changing business environment, the FSC will seek to overhaul relevant regulations pertaining to their operating practices. In order to propel a transition toward productive finance and remove regulatory hurdles for savings banks, a condition of sound management practices should be met. Therefore, the FSC also plans to carry out regulatory reforms regarding the soundness and governance structure of savings banks commensurate with the size and role of savings banks. Key Measures a) Promoting a transition toward productive finance and upgrading rules on operating practices to make them more reasonable The FSC will seek to overhaul regulations to make the financial intermediary function of savings banks more balanced across the real economy, transitioning away from the real estate sector toward SMEs, MMEs, and small merchants. To this end, the FSC will seek
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Feb 08, 2026
- FSC Holds Meeting to Review Situations over Bithumb's Erroneous Payouts and Discuss Improvement Measures
- Chairman Lee Eog-weon of the Financial Services Commission convened a meeting with officials from the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU) and the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) on February 8 to review situations concerning erroneous payouts of bitcoins (BTC) by Bithumb, which took place on the evening of February 6, and to discuss measures to strengthen the internal control system of virtual asset exchange service providers. Current Situation In the wake of accidental payouts of bitcoins (BTC) by Bithumb, which took place around 19:00 on February 6, an emergency meeting was held where the authorities discussed the issue of providing compensations for users following a sharp drop seen in the price of bitcoin (BTC). In this regard, Bithumb announced its own plans to offer compensations for its platform users whose sell transactions were affected by the accident and to make sure that its BTC users ledger is being maintained accurately. At todays meeting, FSC Chairman Lee instructed officials to check whether there are any further damages to users and to continue to monitor the progress of on-site inspections performed by the FSS and any significant movements in the virtual asset market. Government Response In response to Bithumbs erroneous payouts, an emergency response unit was set up at yesterdays meeting, consisting of officials from the FSC, KoFIU, FSS, and DAXA (Digital Asset Exchange Alliance), to make sure that necessary steps are taken to protect the users of virtual assets. As such, at todays meeting, the authorities discussed ways bring about regulatory and structural improvements to strengthen the reliability and transparency of virtual asset exchange service providers. In response to the recently exposed vulnerability in the internal control system of virtual asset exchange service providers, FSC Chairman Lee instructed officials to conduct inspections on Bithumb and all other virtual asset exchange service providers and to make sure that they ar
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Feb 02, 2026
- AI-driven Stock Market Monitoring System Adopted to Boost Early Response Capacity against Unfair Trading Activities
- The Financial Services Commission announced that the Korea Exchange (KRX) will begin to operate an AI-driven market monitoring system from February 3 to bolster its early response capacity against market manipulation and other unfair trading activities. Despite recent increases in the number of attempts to unfairly influence and manipulate stock prices through dissemination of false information online, it remained difficult for authorities to verify the vast volume of data circulating in the cyberspace. Against this backdrop, as a follow-up to the comprehensive measures to stamp out unfair trading activities in stock markets (jointly announced by the FSC, FSS and KRX in July 2025), the KRX has developed an AI-driven monitoring system to more quickly and accurately detect and analyze relevant information circulating in the cyberspace. The newly launched AI-driven market monitoring system has been developed based on the training and analysis of online posts, reported cases of spam text messages, YouTube videos, and relevant data on stock price movements on the stock items that have been previously identified as potential targets of unfair transactions. Based on a set of objective indicators that the AI has learned from the training, the system has been designed to monitor trends of cyber information, assign scores on individual stock items, and automatically detect the items showing a high probability for unfair transactions activities. The findings will assist authorities to look into whether there are actually suspicious transactions activities involving certain stock items and help them to conduct more in-depth examinations if deemed necessary. With the AI-driven market monitoring system in place, authorities will be able to more quickly respond to suspicious transactions activities. The types of cyber information being monitored on a real-time basis will be expanded with an enhanced level of efficiency in sorting out high-risk stock items. The AI-based automated d
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Jan 29, 2026
- Legislative Ground Established to Check Criminal Record on Major Shareholders of Virtual Asset Service Providers
- The Financial Services Commission announced that a revision bill for the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (the Act hereinafter) passed the plenary session of the National Assembly on January 29. The revision is intended to strengthen entry rules for virtual asset service providers and allow the notification of sanctions imposed on former (retired) employees of financial companies. Key Revision Details a) Strengthening of entry rules for virtual asset service providers With the revised law in place, the rules concerning the market entry of virtual asset service providers have been strengthened. More specifically, the revised law authorizes the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU) to check criminal record on major shareholders when screening for the registration of a virtual asset service provider. Previously, only the chief executive and other executive officers were subject to criminal background check. Under the revised law, the scope of laws under which previous rule-breaking activities are screened for will also be broadened to include violations regarding illegal narcotics trafficking, fair trade, tax offenses, specific economic crimes, virtual asset user protection, etc. Additionally, the revised law will enable the KoFIU to examine financial conditions and social credibility of virtual asset service providers and whether they are equipped with appropriate levels of organizational, human resources, computer network, and internal control capacities for complying with relevant regulations. Moreover, even after granting an approval of business registration, the revised law establishes a ground for the KoFIU to impose certain conditions for the purpose of ensuring anti-money laundering, user protection, etc. b) Notification of sanctions imposed on retired employees of financial companies The revised law also includes a provision authorizing the KoFIU to notify financial companies about the issuance of sanctions imposed on
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Jan 19, 2026
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Jan 15, 2026
- Legislative Ground Established to More Effectively Prevent Suspicious Transactions Linked to Vishing Scams
- The Financial Services Commission announced that a revision bill for the Special Act on the Prevention of Loss Caused by Telecommunication-based Financial Fraud and Refund for Loss passed the National Assembly at a plenary session held on January 15. The amended legislation provides a legal ground for relevant officials and authorities (in finance, telecom services, and investigation) to share and make use of suspicious data on the previously established AI-based Anti-phishing Sharing and Analysis Platform (ASAP). Key Revision Details First, the amended legislation establishes a new term fraud-linked suspicious account to allow the sharing of information for suspicious accounts not only for fraudsters but also for victims. Previously, financial companies were able to share information about the accounts used in frauds and those suspected to have incurred damage, but these were all account information related to fraudsters. Thus, previously, there was no legal ground for financial companies to share information about victims accounts. Second, to make sure a stable operation of the AI-based Anti-phishing Sharing and Analysis Platform (ASAP), the FSC is authorized to designate a data sharing and analysis institution. Based on high levels of data analysis expertise and selection criteria, the FSC will designate a data sharing and analysis institution, which will then establish its own technological, physical, and managerial measures to make sure stability in the sharing of data. The FSC will also have the supervisory authority over this institution to revoke designation and take other steps if it fails to carry out duties properly. Third, under the amended Act, the types of information provided through ASAP are more clearly established to increase predictability. In addition, when fraud-related data is being transmitted to the data sharing and analysis institution, there is no need to acquire consent from the data subject (fraudsters and victims) to facilitate a speedy
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Jan 14, 2026
- Responsibilities Mapping to be Piloted for Large-sized Specialized Credit Finance Businesses and Savings Banks
- The Financial Services Commission announced on January 14 that the responsibilities mapping system will be piloted for large-sized specialized credit finance businesses with total assets of KRW5 trillion or more and savings banks with total assets of KRW700 billion or more. With the amended Act on Corporate Governance of Financial Companies (the Act hereinafter) taking effect from July 3, 2024, banks and financial holding companies (from Jan. 2, 2025), as well as large-sized financial investment companies and insurance companies (from Jul. 2, 2025) have already become subject to the submission of their own responsibilities maps to the Financial Supervisory Service. Pursuant to the Act, large-sized specialized credit finance business with total assets of KRW5 trillion or more and savings banks with total assets of KRW700 billion or more will need to submit responsibilities maps to the FSS by July 2, 2026. Smaller-sized financial investment businesses and insurance companies with total assets below KRW5 trillion will also be subject to the July 2 submission due date. From the time responsibilities maps are submitted to the FSS, the chief executives and other executive officers of financial companies become subject to the duty of internal control oversight and risk management in their lines of work, and may become subject to sanctions if found to be in violation of the internal control oversight duty. In this regard, there have not been sufficient incentives made available previously to encourage financial companies to adopt responsibilities maps in advance prior to the legally mandated submission due date, especially due to concerns over potential sanctions for violation. As such, the FSC and the FSS will pilot the responsibilities mapping system for large-sized specialized credit finance businesses and savings banks prior to the actual enforcement date (July 2, 2026). Those wishing to participate in the pilot program will need to submit their own responsibilities map
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Dec 29, 2025
- KoFIU Kicks Off Taskforce Meeting to Seek Regulatory Improvements in Anti-money Laundering Framework
- The Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU) held the kickoff meeting of the taskforce for revamping rules regarding the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (the Act hereinafter) on December 29. The taskforce has been organized with goals to upgrade relevant regulations on Koreas anti-money laundering (AML) framework, provide more effective responses against transborder crimes and serious financial frauds, and prepare for a mutual evaluation on AML/CFT with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) scheduled to be held in 2028. At todays meeting, the taskforce went over the regulatory issues that need to be upgraded and discussed operational plans going forward. First, the taskforce plans to seek regulatory improvements regarding virtual asset service providers (VASPs). In this regard, the travel rule, which currently requires VASPs to provide information about users sending and receiving virtual assets when requested to transfer virtual assets worth KRW1,000,000or more to another VASP, will be expanded to virtual asset transfers of less than KRW1,000,000. Moreover, the taskforce will work to draw up AML measures in preparation for the impending rules on stablecoins and the ensuing changes in its ecosystem. Second, the taskforce plans to seek regulatory reforms to make domestic AML framework more congruent with global standards in preparation for the FATF mutual evaluation. In line with the FATF recommendations, authorities will seek to introduce a suspension of account activities on suspicious accounts to more effectively cut off the flight of criminal proceeds in the middle of a criminal investigation. Additionally, authorities will consider introducing AML rules for attorneys, certified public accountants, and tax accountants to help make Koreas AML rules more consistent with global standards. Third, the taskforce plans to draw up measures to improve the effectiveness of AML requirements and make the inspection and sanctions syste
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Dec 16, 2025
- Revised Rules on Payment Gateway Services to Strengthen Protection of Unsettled Funds for Users
- The Financial Services Commission promulgated a revision to the Act on Electronic Financial Transactions (the Act hereinafter) on December 16. The revised law requires payment gateway (PG) services to separately manage the total amount (100 percent) of unsettled funds externally and establishes provisions for more effective management and supervision over PG services. Under the revised Act, PG services will be obligated to externally manage unsettled funds in their entirety for their sellers and users. The revised Act also increases the capital requirements for PG services in accordance with the volume of quarterly payments transactions.In this regard, PG services that have more than KRW30 billion in quarterly payments transactions will be newly required to meet the minimum capital requirement of KRW2 billion. In addition, PG services will be required to re-register the status of major shareholder when there is any change in the status of major shareholder to help prevent disqualified entities from entering the market Additionally, the revised Act establishes a legislative ground for the authorities to issue a corrective order, suspend the operation of business, and revoke business registration for noncompliance, while making PG services subject to the duty of disclosure of information to ensure protection of users. Since these administrative sanctions will take effect immediately from the day of promulgation, the financial authorities will provide adequate information to the industry to encourage compliance. The duty to externally manage unsettled funds and the increased capital requirement will take effect from December 17, 2026 after preparing subordinate statutes to provide further details. However, to facilitate a seamless adjustment in the industry, the authorities will provide relevant guidelines on the external management of unsettled funds for PG services from January next year. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Dec 15, 2025
- FSC Holds Market Monitoring Meeting and Decides on Continuous Operation of Market Stabilization Programs
- Chairman Lee Eog-weon of the Financial Services Commission presided over a meeting with relevant authorities, research institutions, and market experts on December 15 to review financial market conditions and risk factors going forward. A Summary of FSC Chairmans Remarks In the first half of this year, there were growing anxieties over financial markets due to the Trump administrations tariff policy and uncertainties regarding domestic politics. However, in the second half of the year, the Korean economy and market conditions recovered backed by rigorous policy efforts of the new government and improvement in corporate earnings in the semiconductor sector. Despite this overall sense of stability, there is growing vigilance over domestic financial markets with government bond yields showing an upward movement and the foreign exchange market showing an expanded level of volatility recently. Nonetheless, the Korean economy is sufficiently equipped with the resilience and the policy capacity to respond to crisis situations backed by strong fundamentals. First, domestic financial institutions have been maintaining an adequate level of soundness. Second, Koreas foreign exchange reserve is the ninth largest in the world. Third, credit default swap (CDS) premium in Korea has been brought down significantly from the beginning of this year. In addition, some of the potential risk factors and structural problems for the economy, such as household debt, real estate project finance, and the soundness of nonbank financial institutions, are also being adequately addressed and stably managed through ongoing policy measures. However, since it is possible to see growing market volatility in the future, the FSC will continue to closely work with related authorities to carefully monitor market conditions and take bold and proactive steps to employ market stabilization measures when it becomes necessary. Next year, the FSC will strive to push for major transformation in the financial in
