South Korea

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC | English | AcademicThink | Dec. 12, 2025 | Regulation

The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) has amended its Consumer Protection Guidelines in Electronic Commerce Transactions, effective October 24, 2025. The amendments establish detailed standards and recommendations concerning regulations on six types of online dark patterns under the Act on Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce. These include hidden renewal, drip pricing, pre-selected options, false hierarchy structures, obstructing cancellation or withdrawal, and nagging.

The amended Guidelines clarify that businesses must obtain explicit consumer consent at least 30 days prior to increasing recurring payments or converting free trials to paid services. They define the initial price display page and the total mandatory price, which must include all compulsory fees but exclude optional or circumstance-specific costs. The Guidelines provide concrete examples of prohibited practices relating to pre-selected options, false hierarchy, obstructing cancellation, and nagging to enhance clarity and market predictability.

Recommendations within the Guidelines advise businesses to clearly disclose pricing conditions, notify consumers of possible additional charges from optional selections, ensure consumers can decline these options, and prominently display cancellation or withdrawal buttons. These changes signal the KFTC's intent to strengthen enforcement against dark patterns, urging businesses to review and comply with the updated regulations to avoid violations.

제동 걸린 가상자산 2단계 입법…업계가 바라보는 쟁점은

ZD Net Korea | Local Language | News | Dec. 12, 2025 | Regulation

Phase 2 legislation intended to establish a comprehensive institutional framework for the virtual asset market in Korea has been delayed due to the government's failure to submit key bills by the scheduled deadline. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) had planned to present drafts of a basic digital asset law and Korean-won stablecoin regulations to the National Assembly by December 10, but missed this cutoff, disrupting the anticipated legislative review for the year. These bills are critical as they address issuance, distribution, authorization, and disclosure standards, areas not covered in the initial phase, leading to significant industry disappointment.

The delay is attributed mainly to ongoing disagreements between the FSC and the Bank of Korea regarding the issuance structure for Korean-won stablecoins. The Bank of Korea advocates for a consortium model dominated by commercial banks, citing concerns about financial stability and the payments system, suggesting a bank-centered issuer design to mitigate risks to monetary policy and reserve assets. Conversely, the FSC opposes restrictive shareholding rules, fearing they would limit participation from non-bank entities like fintech and payment firms, thereby reducing industrial diversity. The FSC favors global trends that maintain open issuer participation while controlling risks through capital and liquidity requirements.

These institutional conflicts extend to supervisory authority allocation. The FSC insists on centralized authorization and supervision of stablecoins under its control, aligning with financial regulatory principles. Meanwhile, the Bank of Korea seeks effective involvement from the authorization phase based on payments and settlement stability concerns. Proposals to grant the Bank rights such as participation in inspections or emergency measures were opposed by the FSC, which argues that such involvement would complicate supervision and burden market players.

The regulatory uncertainty is creating anxiety within the virtual asset sector, as stablecoin institutionalization is seen as key to expanding practical applications like payments, remittances, and on-chain financial services. Legal ambiguity around issuance qualifications and supervision is hindering project development, with some banks and fintech companies considering consortium models but unable to proceed fully due to the lack of clear standards. Prolonged delays may push the market toward adopting foreign regulatory frameworks or foreign-currency-backed stablecoins.

The resolution of this dispute is viewed as pivotal for the future direction of Korea’s digital asset industry. The finalized approach to stablecoin issuance and supervision will determine whether the market becomes bank-centric or remains open to diverse private-sector participants. Industry stakeholders warn that overly narrow issuer scopes risk entrenching banks as dominant players, while overly broad regulation raises concerns about reserve asset management and de-pegging risks. The distribution of supervisory authority and safeguards will shape both the sector’s growth speed and its credibility.

코레일 노사, 성과급 정상화 등 잠정 합의…열차 정상 운행

Hankyung | Local Language | News | Dec. 12, 2025 | Strikes and Work Stoppages

Korail and the nationwide railway workers' union have reached a tentative agreement on wage negotiations, including the normalization of performance bonuses, leading to the provisional suspension of the railway workers' general strike. As a result, train operations returned to normal on December 11, avoiding the anticipated commuting disruptions. Initial negotiations began late on the 10th but broke down after 30 minutes; however, resumed talks overnight resulted in the union's decision to suspend the strike to minimize public inconvenience while continuing discussions on detailed wage issues.

The union’s key demands included normalizing performance bonuses, integrating high-speed rail operations, and enhancing safety measures. A major contention point centered on the criteria for performance bonuses, which currently reflect only 80% of base pay. The union criticized the Ministry of Economy and Finance for its unresponsiveness and highlighted repeated wage arrears totaling hundreds of billions of won for Korail employees. Although the strike has been suspended, the union’s right to industrial action remains, with a general strike still possible if the Ministry does not address the bonus normalization at the Public Institution Management Committee meeting scheduled for December 24.

Korail announced it had prepared extensive countermeasures for the potential strike, including a 24-hour emergency response headquarters, but normal train service was maintained due to the union’s last-minute suspension of industrial action. The ongoing negotiations reflect heightened tensions over wage and compensation management within public institutions.