South Korean Regulator to Discuss Spot Bitcoin ETF With U.S. SEC: Report

Lee Bok-hyun, the head of South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), said he is planning on maintaining talks with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and an area of focus will be spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), Hankyung reported on Monday.

“I met with SEC Chairman Gary Gensler (this year) and there are areas where we will focus on issues such as virtual asset issues and bitcoin spot ETF,” Lee told reporters.

In December it was reported that Lee was planning on meeting with Gensler for the first time to discuss crypto regulation. The January meeting was designed to coordinate schedules and strengthen “cooperation between the two agencies,” the FSS said at the time.

The U.S. recently approved spot bitcoin ETFs for the first time after a decade of attempts from the financial sector. Regulators around the world are questioning whether they should do the same.