South Korea’s central bank is calling for circuit breakers on crypto exchanges after a major error at Bithumb led to accidental Bitcoin payouts and a brief price crash on the platform. The incident exposed weak internal controls, prompting regulators to push for stronger safeguards and trading halts to prevent similar disruptions in future.

As lawmakers remain deadlocked over who should control Korean won-pegged stablecoins, the Bank of Korea (BOK) has renewed its call for a bank-led issuance model, warning that privately issued digital tokens could undermine monetary policy, destabilize foreign exchange controls and introduce systemic financial risks.

South Korea plans to submit a stablecoin regulation bill in October to allow banks and tech firms to issue and manage won-pegged stablecoins. Major banks are preparing for adoption and may partner with USDC issuer Circle to enable domestic and international crypto payments.

South Korea local media reports that the Bank of Korea has put a temporary halt on its central bank digital currency initiative and redirected its time and resources to the launch of the Won-backed stablecoin.

Eight major South Korean banks plan to launch a won-backed stablecoin to reduce reliance on dollar-pegged tokens in the country. They are reviewing two possible models and aim to roll out the digital currency by late 2025 or early 2026.

7-Eleven in South Korea will accept CBDC payments as part of a government pilot programme, offering a 10% discount on purchases made with digital currency between April and June 2025. The CBDC trial, launched by the Bank of Korea, involves 100,000 participants and aims to test digital currency use in everyday transactions.

South Korea’s central bank governor emphasized on Thursday that monetary policy easing would require a flexible approach this year due to significant political and economic uncertainties.

he Lazarus Group, associated with North Korea, caused over $300 million in losses through crypto hacking incidents in 2023.

Singapore's central bank head forecasts the decline of private cryptocurrencies for their unreliability. He envisions a future with regulated coins and central bank digital currencies, echoed by Rao, from India's Reserve Bank. The FSB flags risks from complex crypto firms, emphasising the need for robust regulations. The shift towards regulated digital currencies is clear, yet strong oversight remains crucial.

The FSC will purportedly provide policy support, encouraging periodic capability evaluations for companies to enhance their anti-money laundering measures.