The crypto scene in South Korea will win regardless of the outcome of the presidential election in the country, as both candidates campaigned on pro-crypto platforms, promising to ease regulations and expand access to cryptocurrencies.

South Koreans will head to the polls on June 3 to elect a new president in a snap election to replace Yoon Seok-youl, who was impeached and removed from office for attempting to declare martial law in December.
Leading in the polls is Lee Jae-myung of the center-left Democratic Party, who is competing against staunch conservative and People Power Party candidate Kim Mun-soo.

Lee proposed legalizing spot cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds and wants to allow South Korea's $884 billion national pension fund to invest in cryptocurrency.
He also advocates for a broader issuance of stablecoins backed by the South Korean won as part of modernizing the country's financial system and stopping capital outflow.

"We need to create a market for stablecoins backed by won to prevent the leak of national wealth abroad," he said during a policy discussion in May. "I will create a safe investment environment so that young people can build assets and plan for the future."

Lee also aims to ease strict banking rules that require cryptocurrency exchanges to partner with licensed banks to provide fiat services.

Kim also supports the legalization of spot cryptocurrency ETFs and backed Lee's proposal, demonstrating rare bipartisan consensus. He also promised to ease regulations and expand cryptocurrency adoption.

Simon Soojun Kim, CEO of the Seoul-based venture firm Hashed Ventures, told Bloomberg that since all major candidates support pro-crypto policies, 'the country's crypto investors expect a clear victory regardless of the election outcome.'
A Gallup Korea poll conducted on May 28 showed that 49% of respondents support Lee, while 36% said they would vote for Kim.

The urgency for clear regulation is driven by the high level of retail cryptocurrency participation in South Korea. Stricter rules were introduced in July 2024 to impose stringent requirements on exchanges, including potential life sentences for criminal violations.

On May 20, the country's Financial Services Commission completed the development of new comprehensive measures, introducing new guidelines for non-commercial cryptocurrency sales and stricter listing standards for exchanges.

In May, the Democratic Party of South Korea also launched a Digital Assets Committee focused on developing policies regarding cryptocurrencies and promoting industry growth.

According to Bloomberg, South Korea has one of the most active cryptocurrency markets in the world: over 18 million people, or more than a third of the population, are involved in cryptocurrency. Daily trading volumes on cryptocurrency exchanges sometimes exceed the country's main stock indices, and the number of users recently surpassed 16 million.



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