South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) is set to meet with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to seek counsel on matters regarding spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, as reported by Hankyung on Monday, February 5, 2024.
Lee Bok-hyun, the financial agency’s South Korean Director, explained in a Questions & Answers session with local reporters at the agency’s office in Yeouido, Seoul, that he had already met with the U.S. SEC Chair Gary Gensler earlier this year, and now there are specific issues the forthcoming meeting will focus on.
According to the report, the director intends to visit the U.S. during the second quarter of 2024. One focus of the visit would be guidance on the virtual assets industry, which includes Bitcoin spot ETFs.
On January 10, 2024, the US SEC approved ten spot Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Products after nearly eleven years of the rejection of applications and delays. In his note on approval, Gensler noted that the country’s regulations had changed, thus allowing for the approval of these ETFs. He noted this approval does not apply to any other cryptocurrency product or their legal status.
It’s worth noting that the FSS’s decision to seek guidance from the US SEC came after the South Korean President’s Office challenged the financial watchdog’s opposition to spot Bitcoin ETFs.
According to a local media report, the President pressured the agency to adopt a more flexible approach rather than giving a definitive answer of “yes” or “no”, thus indicating a shift in the country’s legal landscape on virtual currencies.
The FSC had previously warned investors to be cautious of domestic securities companies involved in trading or brokering international spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). It noted doing that may result in potential violations of the nation’s Capital Markets Act.
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