BitGo Korea has received Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) registration from South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). The registration was accepted on 18 August 2026, allowing BitGo Korea to provide cryptocurrency custody and transfer services, primarily for institutional and corporate clients.
The approval comes as South Korea implements stricter VASP requirements, including enhanced major shareholder reviews, financial soundness checks and anti-money-laundering controls.
The company plans to focus on institutional digital asset custody, a sector with different infrastructure, security, compliance, and operational requirements than those of a typical retail crypto exchange. Rather than entering the market by acquiring a company that already held VASP registration, BitGo established and registered its own Korean entity. The approval shows that an overseas crypto firm can create a locally incorporated operation and complete South Korea’s registration process directly. BitGo said its services include custody, wallets, staking, trading, financing, stablecoins and settlement.
Chen Fang, CEO of BitGo Korea and chief revenue officer at BitGo, said the company chose to establish a local entity and complete South Korea’s VASP registration process on its own because it views the market as a long-term opportunity.
Fang stated, “This approval gives us the foundation to serve institutional clients in South Korea through a locally registered entity.”
BitGo Korea is entering the South Korean market with support from local partners. Hana Financial Group acquired a 25 per cent stake in BitGo Korea in 2024, while SK Telecom acquired a 10 per cent stake and became a strategic partner. The partnerships provide BitGo with access to local expertise in financial services, technology, identity, and security.
The approval of BitGo in South Korea is a component of a larger initiative to create regulated digital asset operations in several markets. Because digital asset activity is cross-border and regulations are local, the company has grown through regulated entities in several nations.
In Europe, BitGo has pursued compliance under the Markets in Crypto-Assets framework. Its operations have also included jurisdictions such as Singapore, Switzerland, Denmark and the United Arab Emirates.
The firm has declared that it will provide regulated custody and staking services via its Dubai arm after receiving a green light from the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority. Instead of using a single global licence, BitGo has set up various schemes across multiple jurisdictions to help market leaders operate within local regulations.
BitGo Korea received VASP approval just days before tougher registration requirements took effect on 20 August. Under the revised rules, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) expanded its review process to include a VASP’s chief executive officer or controlling shareholder.
If a company is the largest shareholder, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) can also review that company’s largest shareholder and its representative. BitGo Korea’s shareholder base includes Hana Financial Group and SK Telecom. However, neither the FSC nor BitGo has said whether the new requirements were applied to BitGo Korea’s registration, which was approved on 18 August.
The updated framework requires applicants to maintain a debt ratio of no more than 200 per cent and have no record of default during the previous three years. Regulators can also reject applications from companies that were previously declared insolvent financial institutions, or that lost a registration or operating licence for violating financial laws.
The executives that want to start working under financial governance regulations, as specified by South Korean laws, have to meet the qualification criteria described in the country’s financial legislation. Moreover, the Financial Supervisory Commission requires that the applicants have the required personnel, security, facilities, and organisational capabilities related to the protection of customers and anti-money laundering compliance.
Regulators in South Korea have already taken action against foreign cryptocurrency sites that provide local customers with unregistered services. In order for cryptocurrency exchanges and wallet providers aimed at South Korean consumers to continue operating in the nation’s app store, Google Play regulations in January required them to present evidence of an approved VASP application.
The revised framework also tightens rules governing digital asset transfers. The FSC said it will eliminate the existing 1 million won threshold for Travel Rule checks between registered domestic VASPs. As a result, sender information must accompany transfers regardless of transaction size.
Transfers involving foreign exchanges or personal wallet providers will continue to be allowed under risk-based conditions. Six months after the revised rules take effect, registered VASPs will also be required to report transfers of at least 10 million won to overseas VASPs or wallet service providers to the FIU, regardless of the assessed transaction risk.
