PANews reported on October 28th that according to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean People's Power Party lawmaker Park Sung-hoon will lead a proposal to amend the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, formally including stablecoins as legally recognized means of payment. This move aims to fill regulatory gaps in current regulations and eradicate the use of stablecoins for money laundering, tax evasion, and other illegal activities. The amendment explicitly adds stablecoins as a means of payment in Article 3, Paragraph 1, "Definitions." This means that stablecoins will have the same legal status as traditional payment instruments such as South Korean government banknotes, banknotes, and coins. This legislative move echoes concerns raised by the Bank of Korea. In a recent written opinion submitted to the National Assembly, the Bank of Korea expressed concern about the potential risks of US dollar stablecoins, noting that they "may bypass the reporting procedures required by the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act and be used for inter-state current and capital account transactions."


