South Korea's central bank governor: Bitcoin is a commodity, not a currency, and the central bank needs to strengthen research on virtual currencies

Beijing time, October 26, South Korea’s central bank governor Lee Ju-yeol recently rejected Bitcoin’s currency attributes and instead classified this type of cryptocurrency as a commodity.

According to a report from Yonhap News Agency in Seoul, Governor Lee has rejected the possibility of accepting cryptocurrencies as legal tender. The statement is the latest official assessment of cryptocurrency technology following South Korea’s ban on ICOs.

“It is appropriate to regulate virtual currencies because they are commodities, not legal tender,” Lee told a government audit meeting hosted by South Korea’s National Assembly.

“For now, it is not appropriate for the Bank of Korea to take such action,” he added.

Given that work in this area has already been somewhat advanced, Lee has focused his efforts on legislative solutions to address industry issues.

Trading volumes on South Korean exchanges have exploded this year. Back in August, some lawmakers called for tighter regulation of cryptocurrency exchanges in the country. Last month, the country’s financial regulator took a dramatic regulatory step to crack down on ICO fundraising activities.

During the legislative session, Lee also acknowledged that the Bank of Korea could do more research around cryptocurrencies and blockchain.

“We also mentioned that many other countries are conducting research on virtual currencies, such as Sweden. The Bank of Korea will also pay more attention to the research on virtual currencies,” Lee concluded.