South Korean presidential candidate calls out: If elected, will promote the legalization of Bitcoin ETF and create a youth-friendly investment environment.

As the South Korean presidential election enters its countdown stage, the Democratic Party's presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung officially proposed his policies on Crypto Assets yesterday (6), promising to promote the legalization of a Spot ETF for cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, reduce transaction fees, and push for an integrated regulatory system to create a safer and more friendly investment environment for the younger generation.

Lee Jae-myung calls for "Bitcoin ETF legalization": Youth investment pressure becomes a new leverage.

According to a report by the Korea Economic Daily, Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party, ( transliterated ), announced a youth asset policy through social media, emphasizing the promotion of the institutionalization of Crypto Assets Spot ETF, guiding the drop in current Crypto Assets exchange transaction fees, establishing a comprehensive integrated monitoring system and consumer protection mechanism, and adjusting market order in a government-led manner.

I will create a secure investment environment that allows young people to accumulate assets and plan for the future.

This is the first time Lee Jae-myung has clearly proposed a virtual asset policy in the presidential election campaign. His party, the Democratic Party, had already made similar claims last year, and the local Financial Services Commission (FSC) also indicated that it would re-examine the encryption ETF and the registration ban for institutional users, but both have since gone quiet.

Due to the high barriers of real estate and the stock market for young people, cryptocurrency has become a high-risk but high-reward emerging investment option. Lee Jae-myung's policy appeal is precisely a response to this trend, attempting to incorporate crypto assets into the formal institutional system to enhance security and regulation.

(South Korea, following Japan and the UK central banks, excludes the possibility of Bitcoin reserves: maintaining a cautious attitude, volatility is too high)

The People's Power Party once proposed seven major encryption commitments, reaching a consensus between the ruling and opposition parties.

The current ruling party in South Korea, the People Power Party, also proposed the "Seven Major Principles for Virtual Assets" at the end of April, which includes approving Spot ETFs, abolishing the one exchange one bank system, allowing institutional investors to enter the market, and establishing a regulatory framework for stablecoins.

( South Korea Bank 2024 Payment and Settlement Report: 2025 Q2 Digital Currency Testing Program, Accelerating Stablecoin Legislation )

The "one exchange, one bank" regulation stipulates that each cryptocurrency exchange can only cooperate with one local bank to enhance transparency and anti-money laundering efforts, but it has also been criticized for limiting the development of exchanges. Nowadays, even though the two major parties have different perspectives, with the Democratic Party focusing on youth policies and the National Power Party concentrating on industrial systems; both sides seem to have a consensus, hoping to accelerate the institutionalization process of virtual assets.

Policy intent: Targeting young males, combining employment benefits.

Lee Jae-myung's current encryption asset policy, along with a series of proposals regarding youth employment and service benefits, is seen by the outside world as a policy layout targeting the "20 to 30-year-old male" voter group, which has weak support for the Democratic Party.

He proposed to include the years of service of conscripts in the seniority allowance of all public agencies and to promote the full inclusion of the military service period into the national pension premium credit system. Additionally, he suggested expanding rental subsidies, promoting half-price dormitory policies for youth, and providing subsidies for first-time employment insurance, relaxing student loan conditions, and expanding interest reductions.

As the countdown to the South Korean election begins, tens of millions of citizens holding Crypto Assets accounts become a key voting bloc.

On the other hand, the People Power Party is represented by former Minister of Employment Kim Moon-soo in the presidential election. The party was previously led by Yoon Suk-yeol, who was impeached after declaring martial law in December.

( The first presidential arrest warrant in South Korean constitutional history has been issued, with the court determining that President Yoon Suk-yeol is involved in a rebellion charge ).

According to statistics, around 16 million people in South Korea currently own Crypto Assets accounts, accounting for about 31% of the total population, most of whom are from the younger generation. This has also made virtual asset policies one of the key battlegrounds in this election.

The latest poll shows that Lee Jae-myung currently leads other candidates with a support rate of 42%, while acting President Han Duck-soo follows with 13%. The final outcome will be revealed on June 3.

This article is about South Korean presidential candidate's statement: If elected, he will promote the legalization of Bitcoin ETF and create a youth-friendly investment environment. It first appeared in Chain News ABMedia.