Taxation on Income from Virtual Assets to Begin Next Year
Deputy Prime Minister Hong Nam-ki remarked on April 27 that virtual assets are neither currencies nor financial assets and that taxation on income from virtual assets will be initiated next year as scheduled.
“The South Korean government uses the term of virtual asset instead of cryptocurrency and virtual currency,” he said at a press conference, adding, “This means virtual assets are not currencies, and the G20 governments have also shifted towards virtual asset from cryptocurrency.”
“The Financial Services Commission’s official stance is that virtual assets are not financial investment assets defined by the current law and that those assets are different from stocks and bonds, which are financial instruments for productive private fund collection,” he went on to say, continuing, “This is why the commission is not going to protect those investing in virtual assets.”
“According to the Act on Reporting and Use of Certain Financial Transaction Information, virtual asset exchanges now must report themselves to the Financial Services Commission, which is in the interest of transparency,” he explained, adding, “This duty to report can be seen as some degree of institutionalization.”