Woofun AI reports that the Bank of Korea (BOK) has entrenched its position requiring won-denominated stablecoins to originate exclusively from bank-led consortiums. This directive was formalized in materials submitted on Thursday to the National Assembly's finance committee, signaling a refusal to compromise on structural control. The central bank’s insistence on safeguarding issuance through traditional banking channels underscores a deepening institutional divide over digital asset governance.

The policy framework demands the establishment of a statutory policy body involving relevant agencies to oversee these operations.

Woofun AI data shows that this rigid approach has fractured consensus among policymakers and industry groups, directly stalling South Korea's digital asset bill. The resulting deadlock highlights the friction between regulatory caution and market innovation, as stakeholders struggle to align on oversight mechanisms.

Structurally, the BOK plans to accelerate deposit-token use cases in the second half of the year. These tokens, which represent commercial bank deposits, will facilitate government subsidy payments, vouchers, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure. By integrating these instruments into real-world transactions for the general public, the central bank aims to validate the utility of tokenized deposits before broader stablecoin adoption.

Notably, this expansion builds on earlier commitments made in April by BOK Governor Hyun-Song Shin. During his first public address, Shin endorsed both deposit tokens and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).

Concurrently, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced a pilot program utilizing tokenized deposits for government operational spending, reinforcing the state’s interest in digitizing fiscal flows.

The legislative standoff has severely impacted the timeline for the Digital Asset Basic Act. Disagreements persist over whether stablecoin issuers must maintain majority ownership by banks, a key BOK demand. While the ruling Democratic Party proposed in April to regulate stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) under existing financial laws, the bank-led requirement remains unresolved.

Consequently, the bill’s target of the first quarter of 2026, communicated to President Lee Jae-myung in January, has slipped. Delays are compounded by the US-Israeli war with Iran that began in late February, local elections, and delays in reorganizing the Assembly's committee structure. This marks a significant setback for South Korea’s digital asset regulatory framework.