In his inaugural address, Bank of Korea Governor Shin Hyun-song emphasized the importance of central bank digital currencies and bank-issued tokens, omitting any reference to stablecoins as the country considers new cryptocurrency regulations. Shin, who began his term on Tuesday, highlighted the bank's ongoing retail CBDC pilot, Project Hangang, and its participation in Project Agorá, a global tokenization initiative. He positioned digital currency as a key aspect of central banking amid economic challenges and sluggish domestic growth.
Notably, stablecoins were not mentioned in his remarks, despite being a major topic of discussion in Seoul's policy debates, particularly with regards to the proposed Digital Asset Basic Act. Previously, Shin had suggested that stablecoins could coexist with CBDCs and deposit tokens in a complementary and competitive manner. His speech outlined a model where the central bank would issue a CBDC, while commercial banks would provide fully convertible deposit tokens.
Additionally, Shin announced plans to increase scrutiny of crypto markets and non-traditional banking, expand data access to track financial risks, and modernize currency markets, including the introduction of 24-hour foreign exchange trading and an offshore won settlement system.