The South Korean Presidential Committee on the Fourth Industrial Revolution (PCFIR) has reportedly suggested the authorities to authorize financial entities, to roll out crypto-based financial products. 

Reported by the BusinessKorea on January 6, the committee suggested that a few specific products, nominally Bitcoin (BTC) derivatives, should be authorized to be launched, as an initiative to institutionalize digital coins. 

The PCFIR further recommended that the financial sector of the region should be in charge of coming up with a South Korea-based custody option, to steer clear from the dependence on custodians outside of the country, in the crypto handling process. 

The PCFIR also suggested that Bitcoin should be facilitated by the Korea Exchange – the only securities operator throughout the nation located in Busan. 

The PCFIR also recommended the authorities to explore the possibility of new business licenses, or guidelines for crypto exchange firms, along with implementing new crypto assets into the existing financial infrastructure, in the near or far future. 

“As of May 2019, daily crypto-asset trade hit more than 80 trillion won (over $68 billion) in the world, so it is no longer possible to stop crypto-asset trade. […] The Korean government has to gradually allow institutional investors to deal in crypto assets and promote over the counter (OTC) desks dedicated to institutional investors’ trade.”