South Korea has taken another step toward allowing securities to be issued and traded on distributed-ledger infrastructure, with the country’s financial regulator proposing requirements for issuers, trading venues and retail investors. The framework is scheduled to begin in February 2027.
According to Cointelegraph, the Financial Services Commission’s proposal would permit stocks, bonds, funds and certain fractional investment securities to be issued and circulated in tokenized form. Tokenization represents these financial claims digitally on a distributed ledger, potentially allowing them to be handled through systems built on blockchain-style infrastructure.
Capital and operational requirements
The proposed rules would set conditions for companies that issue and manage tokenized securities. Firms that issue these assets while directly managing customer accounts would be required to hold at least 4 billion Korean won in equity capital, equivalent to about $2.8 million based on the figures in the proposal.
Those companies would also need dedicated compliance and technology personnel. The requirements are intended to establish operational safeguards for businesses handling both the issuance of tokenized securities and customer accounts, although the source material does not specify the number of employees or the detailed duties that would apply.
The proposal forms part of a three-phase roadmap unveiled on Sept. 4 for moving securities issuance and trading onto distributed-ledger infrastructure. The changes would not be limited to one type of investment product: the planned framework covers traditional instruments such as stocks and bonds, as well as funds and certain fractional investment products.
New OTC venue and retail limits
Separate amendments to capital markets regulations would create an additional over-the-counter exchange license for debt securities. Over-the-counter markets allow securities to be traded outside a conventional exchange structure, subject to the applicable regulatory framework.
The proposal would also limit retail investors to 100 million Korean won, or approximately $70,000, in annual net purchases on each OTC exchange. The limit applies separately to each venue, according to the proposed changes. The source material does not provide further details on how the restriction would be monitored or enforced.
Consultation before February 2027 start
The draft rules are due to enter a public consultation period on Friday, running through Nov. 11. After that process, they will move into an approval procedure.
The regulations are scheduled to take effect on Feb. 4, 2027. That date is also when amendments recognizing distributed ledgers as infrastructure for issuing and circulating securities are expected to become effective. The proposal therefore sets out both the operating requirements for businesses and the legal foundation for using distributed-ledger systems in the securities market.
Moneyiar market picture
Moneyiar market data at the stated times shows mixed performance among the tracked digital assets:
- Ethereum Name Service (ENS): $6.7374613858, down 4.27% over 24 hours and 4.79% over seven days, as of Oct. 3, 2026, 09:19 +03:30.
- Cap (CAP): $0.0718206744, up 7.11% over 24 hours and 39.72% over seven days, as of Oct. 3, 2026, 09:19 +03:30.
- Request (REQ): $0.0549542219, down 2.66% over 24 hours and 3.8% over seven days, as of Oct. 3, 2026, 09:18 +03:30.
- Propy (PRO): $0.3623882289, down 0.7% over 24 hours and up 4.53% over seven days, as of Oct. 3, 2026, 02:04 +03:30.
