South Korea to Publish Tokenized Securities Rules in July, Allows Pooled Fractional Products

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) has set a July deadline to publish detailed rules for tokenized securities, moving to operationalize landmark legal changes that take effect on February 4, 2027. At a public-private council meeting on May 15, the FSC reviewed rule drafts covering issuance, trading, settlement and supporting infrastructure that will give practical force to the amended Capital Markets Act and Electronic Securities Act. The regulator says it will use industry feedback to finalize models in July, with a particular focus on balancing innovation, market order and investor protection. A notable change under consideration is more flexible treatment of fractional investment products. Current rules typically restrict fractional offerings to a single underlying asset—think one property. The FSC is preparing to permit pooled fractional products that combine similar asset types into portfolio-style offerings, while capping pooled issuance within a set range to limit risk. Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-young emphasized the intent to allow pooled issuance but keep investor safeguards front and center. July’s rule package is also expected to include a roadmap for tokenizing standard securities—stocks, bonds and money market funds (MMFs). That follows experiments in other markets with tokenized public securities, green bonds and tokenized MMFs. But Seoul will not leap to put all electronic securities on-chain at once: regulators plan phased tests covering rights, trading, settlement and on-chain payment rails to avoid disrupting existing market infrastructure. Work on the rules is happening alongside the build-out of the technical plumbing. Last week Crypto.news reported that Samsung SDS won a contract to develop and operate a token securities platform for the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). The platform will link KSD’s electronic securities account system with blockchain-based records and is expected to support issuance, circulation checks, rights management and real-time monitoring ahead of the 2027 rollout. These tokenization efforts sit within a broader push on digital-asset policymaking. The ruling party has reportedly finalized a draft Digital Asset Basic Act covering stablecoins, tokenized products and digital asset service providers. Separately, the FSC has signaled plans to lift a long-standing ban on corporate crypto investments, potentially allowing eligible listed firms and professional investors to allocate up to 5% of equity capital to top crypto assets. Taken together, the regulatory and technical moves show South Korea advancing a coordinated strategy: build the legal framework, test the systems, and open regulated pathways for both tokenized securities and mainstream crypto participation. Watch July for the detailed rulebook that will shape how tokenized finance operates in Korea.