PANews October 10 news, according to Yonhap News Agency, South Korea's Financial Services Commission Chairman Lee Eok-won said that the provision in the pending Basic Act on Digital Assets regarding restrictions on major shareholders' shareholding in virtual asset exchanges was not directed by any specific individual, but was considered in light of the higher public responsibility that exchanges need to bear after institutionalization.
Lee Eok-won stated during the National Assembly Political Affairs Committee's parliamentary inspection of the Financial Services Commission that South Korean virtual asset exchanges currently operate under a declaration renewal system every three years, but after the Basic Act on Digital Assets is implemented in the future, exchanges will shift to an institutionalized operating model requiring licenses. He said that exchanges have the nature of infrastructure, and therefore need to possess publicness and responsibility commensurate with their status.
Previously, South Korean lawmakers questioned whether the relevant provision was influenced externally, since the Financial Services Commission's original plan did not include a major shareholder shareholding restriction clause, and pointed out that if forcibly implemented, major shareholders of South Korean exchanges and potential acquirers might need to sell shares worth trillions of won.
In response, Lee Eok-won said that the government is currently drafting the relevant bill, and the specific content of the shareholding restriction can be further coordinated during the National Assembly review process, and said it will be designed to fully reflect opinions from all parties. He also stated that the government draft of the Basic Act on Digital Assets is undergoing final coordination and will be submitted as soon as possible, but did not announce a specific timetable.