South Korea Logs $367M in Stablecoin Outflows in June
South Korea had 560.3 billion won ($367 million) in net stablecoin outflows to overseas exchanges in June, the 18th straight month of net outflows.
Financial Supervisory Service data show South Korea’s five major crypto exchanges — Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax — transferred 2.7 trillion won offshore in June and received 2.2 trillion won, producing a net outflow of 560.3 billion won ($367 million).
The outflows mark the 18th consecutive month of net stablecoin transfers to overseas trading venues and follow a sustained trend of monthly net transfers that began more than a year ago.
Market participants pointed to demand for products that are limited or unavailable on domestic exchanges, including overseas derivatives, tokenized real-world assets, decentralized finance protocols and staking services, as factors behind the transfers.
Lawmaker Lee Jong-wook, who made the FSS data public, urged regulators to reassess investor protection and cross-border supervision, stating: “The government must comprehensively examine its investor protection and supervisory frameworks again and move swiftly to improve regulations.”
Regulatory work is underway to create a broader legal framework for digital assets. A recent policy report recommended interim licensing guidance and phasing in stablecoin rules before the proposed Digital Asset Basic Act is finalized. The proposed law would set rules for stablecoin issuance, disclosure and market activity.
Lawmakers have not resolved competing drafts of the Digital Asset Basic Act. Disagreement over which institutions should be allowed to issue won-pegged stablecoins has contributed to delays in completing the legislation.
The Financial Intelligence Unit has proposed expanding Travel Rule reporting to include transfers below 1 million won (about $650) and has called for stronger action against unregistered overseas exchanges serving South Korean customers. The FIU warned that uneven licensing and supervision across jurisdictions creates opportunities for regulatory arbitrage.
The June outflow continues a pattern of sustained net transfers offshore that policy makers and market participants have tracked for more than a year.
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