Hong Nam-ki, fomrer head of the Office for Government Policy Coordination at the Prime Minister’s Office, has been nominated as the Moon Jae-in administration’s second deputy prime minister for economic affairs and strategy and finance minister. He had persisted with prudence over cryptocurrencies throughout his stint as head of the policy coordination office. As he emerged as Korea’s new economic czar, the blockchain industry is showing keen attention to how his nomination will affect the government’s announcement of guidelines for initial coin offerings (ICOs) scheduled for this month.
Hong has been chairing task force meetings regarding virtual currencies established within the policy coordination office. A task force has been in operation since late 2017 to discuss cryptocurrency-related policies and how relevant laws are enacted.
The finance minister nominee said, “For now, cryptocurrencies are not legal tenders” during a National Policy Committee meeting of the National Assembly in February. He also said there are different opinions in the Korean government as to how cryptocurrencies are seen. Given that such issues as regulations and legalities could be dealt with only after how virtual currencies are defined, his remarks might be a precursor to understanding the Korean government’s position.
It seems difficult at the moment to expect the government to take a forward-looking position on cryptocurrencies, considering that he once said cryptocurrency transactions are “not normal trading” owing to violent price volatility. But his position is not to put a blanket ban on cryptocurrencies. The Office of Government Policy Coordination pledged a strict crackdown and harsh punishment on unlawful crypto transactions last December, announcing a package of emergency measures: considering taxation on cryptocurrencies, obliging banks to confirm cryptocurrency traders’ identities more strictly and strengthening the supervision of crypto exchanges. Answering a petition for opposing the government’s regulations on cryptocurrencies at the presidential office’s website earlier this year, Hong renewed his resolve against illegal acts, saying, “The government will prevent illegal acts and opaqueness in the process of virtual currency transactions.”
He is positive about nurturing blockchain technologies though. In his reply to the petition, Hong said, “The government is in a position to foster blockchain technologies actively because blockchain is the core technology in the age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.” He also vowed “all fiscal and administrative support with respect to the budget for promoting the blockchain industry” in the legislature’s annual inspection of the policy coordination office in October.
/Sun Woo Park Reporter blacksun@decenter.kr
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