[Inside Korea Crypto] Circle and Tether Visit Korea Back-to-Back as Competition for KRW Stablecoin Leadership Heats Up

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire’s 24-Hour Korea Visit Focuses on Banks and Exchanges

The most closely watched development last week was the 24-hour Korea visit by Circle founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire from April 13 to 14. Despite the short stay, Allaire met with major commercial banks including KB Kookmin Bank and NH NongHyup Bank, as well as domestic fintech firms and executives from Korea’s five major crypto exchanges, to discuss stablecoins and on-chain financial infrastructure partnerships.

During the visit, Allaire emphasized the importance of a KRW stablecoin and outlined several key positions:

• “A KRW stablecoin is essential if the Korean economy is to avoid being left behind in the future digital economic order.”
• “Circle has no plan to issue a KRW stablecoin directly. It should be led by Korean financial institutions.”
• “Once regulations in Korea become clearer, Circle will establish a local office and formally enter the market.”
• “We are also reviewing investment opportunities in Korean startups and venture capital.”

Industry participants generally viewed the visit as more of an exploratory move than a trip aimed at producing immediate concrete outcomes. While domestic firms appeared eager to build global reference points through engagement with Circle, many observers noted that the talks remained at the level of strategic direction-setting due to the regulatory vacuum surrounding KRW stablecoin legislation.

Tether Also Visits Korea, Meeting KB Financial and Coinone

Following Circle, Tether—the world’s largest stablecoin issuer by market capitalization—was also confirmed to have visited Korea around the same period for meetings with KB Financial Group and Coinone. This created a notable scenario in which the two dominant global stablecoin issuers simultaneously targeted the Korean banking sector.

The near-simultaneous visits are widely interpreted as strategic efforts to secure partnerships with major Korean financial institutions ahead of the passage of KRW stablecoin legislation. In particular, KB Kookmin Bank is known to have been in contact with both Circle and Tether, drawing attention to how future partnership lines may develop.

Digital Asset Framework Act, ICO Reform, and Brokerage-Led Exchange Acquisitions Move in Parallel

Alongside the stablecoin issue, Korea’s regulatory environment is also being reshaped quickly. According to an industry guide published by Tiger Research on April 9, major institutions are already moving to secure market positioning even before KRW stablecoin legislation has been finalized. This is being seen as an unusual development ahead of full-scale discussions on the second phase of the Digital Asset Framework Act.

Debate over allowing ICOs is also gaining momentum. Earlier in March, the Financial Supervisory Service held a briefing session attended by around 350 participants to discuss a supervisory framework for permitting ICOs, which have been fully banned since 2017. That has raised the possibility that Korea’s nearly nine-year prohibition on ICOs could be nearing a turning point.

At the same time, securities firms are making visible moves to acquire crypto exchanges. Korea Investment & Securities is reportedly pursuing Coinone, while Mirae Asset is said to be in the process of acquiring Korbit. If these deals are completed, they could significantly reshape the structure of Korea’s digital asset market.

Market Data: Bitcoin Reclaims $75,000 as Upbit Maintains Dominance

The market showed signs of recovery in the third week of April. As of April 17, Bitcoin traded at $75,152, up 4.72% from the previous week. That marked a rebound within roughly two weeks from $66,889 on April 3, when it had posted a weekly decline of 2.77%.

In Korea’s KRW markets, Upbit maintained a dominant share of about 71.6%, while Bithumb held second place at around 25%. In terms of banking partnerships, Upbit works with KB Kookmin Bank for real-name accounts, while Bithumb and Coinone partner with NH NongHyup Bank. Analysts say this banking structure helps explain why both KB Kookmin Bank and NH NongHyup Bank were key points of contact during the Korea visits by Circle and Tether.

Meanwhile, access to Binance’s app in Korea has been blocked as of January 2026. With Korean investors facing tighter constraints on overseas exchanges, the influence of the country’s five major domestic exchanges appears to be strengthening further.

Key Takeaway: Positioning Competition Intensifies During the Regulatory Gap

Looking across last week’s developments, the race to secure leadership in the stablecoin market emerged as the defining theme. The near-simultaneous Korea visits by Circle and Tether, and their outreach to local banks, suggest a coordinated push to secure partnerships before KRW stablecoin legislation is officially enacted.

That said, Korea remains in a regulatory gray zone, and many observers believe the market is still in an exploration and positioning phase rather than one of immediate execution. With three separate regulatory tracks moving at once—the second-stage Digital Asset Framework Act, supervisory planning for ICO legalization, and brokerage acquisitions of exchanges—the key question over the coming months will be how domestic financial institutions and exchanges choose to align themselves with global players.

What to Watch Next Week

• Follow-up discussions between KB Kookmin Bank, NH NongHyup Bank, Circle, and Tether
• Whether the Financial Services Commission reveals a timeline for the second phase of digital asset legislation
• Progress in the Korea Investment & Securities–Coinone and Mirae Asset–Korbit acquisition processes
• Whether the Financial Supervisory Service issues further guidance on an ICO supervisory framework