Crypto Craze: Over 25% of South Korea’s Workforce Now Holds Digital Assets

South Korea's workforce is diving headfirst into crypto—proof that when traditional finance disappoints, digital gold glitters brighter.

The Stats Don't Lie

One in four working-age adults now holds Bitcoin, altcoins, or other blockchain-based assets. No surprise—when banks offer 0.1% interest, even meme coins start looking like retirement plans.

Why This Matters

Seoul's subway ads aren't pushing savings accounts anymore. They're flaunting exchange sign-up bonuses. The Won might be stable, but trust in it? Not so much.

The Cynic's Take

Wall Street still calls crypto 'risky' while quietly hoarding BTC ETFs. Meanwhile, Korean office workers outpace hedge funds—proving you don't need a Bloomberg terminal to spot a trend.

Bitcoin leads, but users begin diversifying holdings

Bitcoin is still the most popular, as six out of ten investors own BTC. However, with increased experience, most are venturing into altcoins and stablecoins. NFTs and security tokens are still unpopular, as nine out of ten investors prefer to keep only coin investments.

Banking restrictions became a major problem. Seven in ten investors said they WOULD prefer their main bank for crypto transactions if allowed to link multiple accounts. Currently, South Korea only allows one bank account per exchange, which is very strict and limits user experience and flexibility.

Youth unemployment in South Korea is currently high at 6.6%, more than double the national average. The increasing cost of housing and the overall lack of wage increases are pushing young Koreans into high-risk crypto investments. This contrasts with older investors, who increasingly appreciate crypto for conducting structured savings and long-term wealth planning.

KB Kookmin Bank pushes forward with stablecoin filings

Institutional action is picking up pace. Recently, South Korea-based KB Kookmin Bank submitted 17 trademarks potentially related to a future stablecoin product, including designations such as KBKRW and KRWST. Both filings were filed with the Korea Intellectual Property Rights Information Services and cover software for VIRTUAL currency and blockchain-based systems.

These trademarks are part of the bank’s wider plans to develop a national stablecoin consortium. KB is among eight big banks planning a joint venture to issue won-pegged stablecoins. The effort is coordinated with Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute and the Open Blockchain and Decentralised Identifier Association.

Such steps correspond to the political shift with President Lee Jae-myung, whose government is likely to accelerate the institutional adoption of crypto.

Although crypto was not featured in his inauguration speech, the Democratic Party Digital Asset Committee plans to push regulatory reforms and integrate crypto into the financial system. Lee will be in charge of significant crypto policies in South Korea, such as the possible implementation of the Digital Asset Basic Act (DABA). This MOVE started with Yoon, who had campaigned on it but could not witness it to completion since he was relieved early.

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