In a dramatic turnaround, the South Korean parliament, the National Assembly, has voted in favor of the country’s first cryptocurrency-specific legislation in the past few hours.
The amended Special Financial Transactions Information Act, which was approved by a National Assembly finance committee in November last year, will effectively create a framework for the country’s cryptocurrency industry.
The crypto-specific portions of the bill are largely based on the G7’s FATF guidelines about how governments should police what it terms as virtual asset service providers (VASPs) – namely crypto exchanges and brokerages.
Per multiple media reports, including Maeil Kyungjae, the house voted unequivocally in favor of the bill, with 182 votes for, zero against and no abstentions.
The bill, which will become effective in March 2021, will also see a system of cryptocurrency taxation formally introduced for the first time in the nation – and will enshrine existing guidelines for banks dealing with crypto exchanges into law. This will likely put an end to anonymous trading in the country.
The bill names the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) as the regulatory body that will police the industry.
Many had feared the bill would be derailed by disruptions caused to the National Assembly’s schedule caused by the coronavirus. The parliament’s buildings were closed temporarily after it was discovered that virus-infected individuals had been on the premises. With a backlog of bills and new emergency legislation pertaining to the coronavirus slated, industry insiders were fearing the worst – an indefinite delay that could have led to mass closures.
However, the parliament facilities have since been through a “deep clean” process, and MPs convened on March 5 to pass a large number of bills, including the vital amendment.
