South Korea’s Financial Regulations Chief to Meet SEC Chairman Gensler Next Month: Report

South Korea’s chief financial regulator plans to meet with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler in Washington D.C. next month, Korean news outlet ChosunBiz reported Wednesday.

Financial Supervisory Service Governor Lee Bok-hyeon and Gensler will discuss crypto regulations, an increasingly critical area of focus for Korean regulators. The visit will mark the first meeting between the two.

“We are coordinating specific schedules and agendas with the aim of strengthening cooperation between the two agencies,” the FSS said, according to ChosunBiz.

South Korea developed digital asset legislation this year to beef up consumer protections for crypto investors. The legislation will go into effect in July 2024. Roughly a quarter of adults aged 18 to 60 invested in crypto during a six-month period, making the country one of the largest markets for cryptocurrency trading, KuCoin data shows.

South Korea’s crypto traders were burned by rampant fraud in the digital assets space, prompting the country’s regulators to aim at reining in the largely underregulated space. In 2022, South Korean crypto entrepreneur Do Kwon’s Terra-Luna ecosystem collapsed, precipitating a $40 billion crypto market crash.

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