Focus on the Formation of the Inaugural Committee
Authorities Deliberate on Whether to Disclose Expert List
Discussion on Key Issues Including Phase 2 Legislation and In-Kind ETFs
Financial authorities are busy with the final preparations for the Virtual Asset Committee, which will handle sensitive virtual asset issues such as the approval of virtual asset spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs). As attention focuses on the composition of the inaugural committee, it is reported that the authorities are deliberating whether to disclose the list of private experts within the committee.
According to financial authorities and the virtual asset industry on the 20th, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) has completed the composition of the Virtual Asset Committee members and is in the final stages of launching it. When FSC Chairman Kim Byung-hwan announced plans to launch the committee within September at a press briefing earlier this month, it was speculated that the appointments were nearing completion.
The chairperson will be Kim So-young, the FSC Vice Chairman, and the committee is expected to consist of up to 15 members. The members will include private and public experts with certain qualifications, such as Jeon Yo-seop, Director General of Digital Finance Policy, who oversees virtual assets and related departments, as well as officials from the public sector, academia, legal circles, and the virtual asset industry.
However, financial authorities are still considering whether to disclose the list of private experts belonging to the Virtual Asset Committee. Typically, the FSC publicly discloses the composition of advisory bodies such as the Financial Development Deliberation Council, but keeps the members of decision-making bodies like the Supervisory Committee confidential to preemptively prevent potential conflicts of interest.
The Virtual Asset Committee is an advisory body established under the FSC pursuant to Article 5 of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act, which came into effect on July 19. It is tasked with important duties such as discussing the second phase of virtual asset-related legislation, approval of virtual asset spot ETFs, and issuance of corporate real-name accounts?urgent issues for the industry.
At a press briefing earlier this month, FSC Chairman Kim Byung-hwan explained the role of the Virtual Asset Committee while announcing plans to launch it within September. Chairman Kim said regarding investor protection measures for virtual assets, "There is a legal basis for the formation of the Virtual Asset Committee," adding, "Rather than having a fixed idea of what constitutes investor protection, the intention is to start concrete discussions on protecting virtual asset investors."
A virtual asset industry insider said, "Because candidates with conflicts of interest, such as those involved with virtual asset exchanges or individual project advisory roles, were all excluded, there are even talks that most of the committee members are people who have little connection with the industry."
As the establishment of the Virtual Asset Committee becomes more tangible, expectations within the virtual asset and blockchain industries have grown. Another industry insider said, "The fact that official discussions are starting at the authorities itself is meaningful," adding, "We will have to wait and see what policies the financial authorities, who have only regulated virtual assets so far, will come up with."
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