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Bank of Korea Urges Bank-Led Won Stablecoins, Flags Depeg Risks in New Report

The central bank’s 140-page assessment presses for a bank-led model to contain depegging risks during a year-end legislative push.

Overview

  • The report says the promise that one coin equals one won is a private agreement without legal or central-bank guarantees, leaving holders outside depositor protections.
  • The Bank of Korea outlines seven risks from won-pegged tokens, including depegging and coin runs, regulatory evasion, capital flight, consumer-protection gaps, weaker monetary policy, and pressure on bank intermediation.
  • The central bank recommends issuance by regulated banks or bank-led consortia, a cross-authority policy council, and parallel piloting through Project Hangang.
  • Officials warn non‑dollar stablecoins face higher vulnerability, citing EURC’s frequent sub‑par trading and drawing lessons from Terra/Luna and USDC during the Silicon Valley Bank episode.
  • Lawmakers are moving to finalize a stablecoin framework by year-end, with measures under discussion such as banning interest-like incentives, while private efforts like BDACS and Woori Bank’s KRW1 proceed ahead of final rules.