South Korea’s Office of the President has urged the financial regulator to reconsider the possibility of approving a local spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), an official of the presidential office said.

Sung Tae-yoon, the chief of staff for policy of the presidential office, said in a briefing on Thursday that the South Korean government is exploring ways to incorporate foreign affairs into local regulations — which may indicate the country’s openness to launching spot crypto ETFs, local news outlet Maeil Business reported Friday.

The presidential office’s comment comes after the Financial Services Commission last week warned local firms that brokering foreign-listed bitcoin spot ETFs might be interpreted as a violation of capital market regulations. Following the announcement, several major local securities companies suspended trading of existing foreign spot bitcoin ETFs.

Elsewhere in Asia

While South Korea’s government holds a somewhat divided opinion on the possibility of a local spot bitcoin ETF, Singapore and Thailand have said it’s not something they’re considering. The Monetary Authority of Singapore told CNA earlier this week that spot bitcoin ETFs are not granted for offering to local retail investors. Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission also said this week that it does not plan to approve local firms to launch such ETFs, as reported by the Bangkok Post. 

Regional experts have said that Hong Kong could be the next hub in Asia to introduce a local spot crypto ETF, with its financial regulators publishing two circulars in December to address the requirements for such ETFs. Livio Weng, COO of Hong Kong-based crypto exchange HashKey, said last week that 10 fund managers, including some backed by Chinese capital, are looking into launching spot crypto ETFs in the city.