The post South Korea Proposes Crypto Exchange Ownership Caps, Threatening Major Deals appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) has reportedly proposed limiting major shareholders of cryptocurrency exchanges to 15-20% ownership stakes, a regulatory bombshell dropped on December 30-31 that is now casting a long shadow over the industry’s outlook for 2026. The proposal would force the founders and controlling shareholders of Korea’s top five exchanges to divest significant portions of their holdings. Sponsored Sponsored A New Year Clouded by Uncertainty The timing of the announcement—just days before the new year—has left industry participants scrambling to assess the implications. A local media outlet first broke the story on December 30, which was subsequently covered by major financial outlets. What was expected to be a celebratory period marking another year of growth in one of the world’s most active crypto markets has instead become a period of anxious speculation about the future of exchange ownership structures. “The industry entered 2026 under a cloud of regulatory uncertainty,” one exchange executive told reporters. “Deals that were on the verge of closing are now back on the drawing board.” Sweeping Changes to Governance Under the proposed Digital Asset Basic Act, the FSC aims to transform crypto exchanges from founder-controlled private enterprises into quasi-public infrastructure, similar to Alternative Trading Systems (ATS) under Korea’s Capital Markets Act. The impact would be immediate and far-reaching: Exchange Largest Shareholder Current Stake Required Divestment Upbit (Dunamu) Founder (Song Chi-hyung) 25.52% 5-10% Bithumb Bithumb Holdings 73.56% 53-58% Coinone Founder (Cha Myung-hun) 53.44% 33-38% Korbit NXC 60.5% 40-45% GOPAX Binance 67.45% 47-52% The proposal also signals a shift from the current registration system to a full-licensing regime, with regulators conducting fitness reviews of major shareholders—a level of scrutiny previously reserved for traditional financial institutions. Sponsored Sponsored Mega-Deals in Limbo Two of the most significant corporate developments in Korea’s crypto sector now face major complications.…