Financeupdated 52m ago2 min read
Archive photo · 3 January 2007Bank of Korea Surveys 31 Banks and Brokerages on Crypto Hack and Market Risks
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Bank of Korea surveys 31 financial institutions—18 banks and 13 brokerages—on crypto risks Survey covers dedicated crypto teams, budgets, investments, and risk controls
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BOK tests crypto shock readiness
The Bank of Korea launched its first reported risk assessment of financial institutions involved in digital assets by surveying 18 banks and 13 brokerages, with responses due on Wednesday. The questionnaire asked institutions about crypto staffing, budgets, business lines, and investments in domestic and overseas crypto companies, and it built scenarios around a temporary shutdown of the country's largest exchange after a major hack, a steep price fall followed by a trading slump, and heavy crypto-linked losses at another institution. The review began before last week's $6.3 billion Binance breach, and U.S. authorities blamed the attack on North Korean hackers.
The Bank of Korea also tied the exercise to South Korea's regulatory gap, as banks run stablecoin pilots while the proposed Digital Asset Basic Act stalls. The Bank of Korea official told The Korea Herald, "Financial institutions are making their own preparations even as virtual asset legislation is moving more slowly than the market expected."
Who is surveyed, what is asked
Bloomingbit said the Bank of Korea sent questionnaires on Oct. 23 to 18 domestic banks and 13 securities firms, and it said the survey covers dedicated crypto teams, budget size, and investment status.
Bloomingbit listed South Korea’s five largest banks as KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH NongHyup as part of the 18-bank group.
The questionnaire asked firms to assess how they would be affected if South Korea’s largest crypto exchange by market share temporarily suspended operations because of a hack or other incident.
The questionnaire also asked firms to evaluate the impact of a sharp drop in Bitcoin prices and a prolonged trading slump, and it included scenarios where other financial institutions suffer large losses from crypto-related incidents.
Bloomingbit said the Bank of Korea planned to collect responses through Nov. 4 and use them for internal review.
Cyber rules tighten as stablecoins advance
The Financial Services Commission proposed stricter security requirements in October after finding deficiencies at 130 of 555 financial companies, and it followed incidents at 16 firms including crypto exchanges. The proposals call for more frequent vulnerability assessments and greater accountability for executives, as the Bank of Korea’s crypto risk survey runs alongside tighter cybersecurity supervision. BigGo Finance said the review comes as banks run stablecoin pilots while the proposed Digital Asset Basic Act stalls over disagreements about which institutions should be allowed to issue tokens.
BigGo Finance said KB Financial Group completed a won-denominated stablecoin pilot in May, and it said Kakao Pay and KakaoBank teamed up with Fireblocks in September to explore digital-asset infrastructure. BigGo Finance said the questionnaire asks about concentration risk and operational readiness by requiring institutions to disclose how much they have invested in crypto-related companies at home and abroad.