🇦🇹 Austria vs 🇰🇷 South Korea: crypto licensing compared
Decision context and regulator route
Austria and South Korea are commonly considered side by side for crypto authorisation. In Austria the route is the MiCA CASP Authorisation granted by the Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) overseen by Finanzmarktaufsicht (FMA) Österreich; in South Korea it is the VASP registration (not a discretionary licence) under the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (the 'FTRA'/AML Reporting Act, amended effective 25 Mar 2021), which requires: (1) ISMS certification from KISA (Korea Internet & Security Agency); (2) for KRW fiat on/off-ramp services, a bank-issued real-name verified account; plus fit-and-proper/AML program requirements. Layered on top since 19 July 2024 is the Act on the Protection of Virtual Asset Users (VAUPA), which adds customer-asset segregation, insurance/reserve, and market-abuse rules but does not replace the underlying FTRA registration. under Financial Services Commission (FSC), Korea's top financial policymaker; Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU, also referred to as FIU), an FSC-subordinate unit established 2001 under the FTRA that receives and processes VASP registrations and AML reporting; day-to-day supervision/inspection is delegated to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), which set up dedicated Virtual Asset Supervision/Investigation bureaus (announced 29 Nov 2023). FSC retains final sanctioning authority.. The public licence and regulator fields below are open to everyone; the complete sourced comparison is included with access.
Austria: verified 2026-08-01 · South Korea: verified 2026-08-15
| Dimension |
🇦🇹 Austria
partly open
Verified 2026-08-01
|
🇰🇷 South Korea
partly open
Verified 2026-08-15
|
|---|---|---|
| Licence type | MiCA CASP Authorisation granted by the Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) | VASP registration (not a discretionary licence) under the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (the 'FTRA'/AML Reporting Act, amended effective 25 Mar 2021), which requires: (1) ISMS certification from KISA (Korea Internet & Security Agency); (2) for KRW fiat on/off-ramp services, a bank-issued real-name verified account; plus fit-and-proper/AML program requirements. Layered on top since 19 July 2024 is the Act on the Protection of Virtual Asset Users (VAUPA), which adds customer-asset segregation, insurance/reserve, and market-abuse rules but does not replace the underlying FTRA registration. |
| Regulator | Finanzmarktaufsicht (FMA) Österreich | Financial Services Commission (FSC), Korea's top financial policymaker; Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU, also referred to as FIU), an FSC-subordinate unit established 2001 under the FTRA that receives and processes VASP registrations and AML reporting; day-to-day supervision/inspection is delegated to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), which set up dedicated Virtual Asset Supervision/Investigation bureaus (announced 29 Nov 2023). FSC retains final sanctioning authority. |
| Capital requirement | Austria capital requirement is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea capital requirement is included in the £349 pass. |
| Timeline to authorisation | Austria timeline to authorisation is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea timeline to authorisation is included in the £349 pass. |
| Local substance | Austria local substance is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea local substance is included in the £349 pass. |
| Application cost | Austria application cost is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea application cost is included in the £349 pass. |
| Ongoing cost | Austria ongoing cost is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea ongoing cost is included in the £349 pass. |
| Passporting | Austria passporting is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea passporting is included in the £349 pass. |
| MiCA CASPs approved | Austria mica casps approved is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea mica casps approved is included in the £349 pass. |
| Key restrictions | Austria key restrictions is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea key restrictions is included in the £349 pass. |
| Recent changes | Austria set 30 June 2026 as the end of its transitional regime (shorter runway than the EU default 1 July 2026 deadline), creating pressure for existing FM-GwG registered VASPs to secure full CASP authorisation; Bybit reported as licensed in Austria per exchange-tracking source OSL EU GmbH was authorised on 7 July 2026 (per ESMA's interim register), the eleventh Austrian CASP. | The 20 Aug 2026 tightening is now identifiable as Act No. 21358 (amendment to the FTRA/AML Reporting Act), promulgated 19 Feb 2026 and taking effect 20 Aug 2026. It removes the KRW 1,000,000 Travel Rule de minimis threshold and separately expands VASP entry screening: adds a statutory definition of major shareholders, extends fit-and-proper disqualification checks to major shareholders, adds financial condition, social credibility, organisational, staffing and IT review factors, and authorises KoFIU to attach conditions when accepting a VASP report. Existing registered VASPs must re-report under the amended Article 7 within 3 months of the effective date (by approximately 20 Nov 2026). Separately, a Foreign Exchange Transactions Act amendment creating cross-border VASP registration passed 7 May 2026 (effective date disputed, 2 Aug vs 2 Dec 2026). The FSC's implementing-decree package (public comment 30 March to 11 May 2026) adds entry screening for VASP re-reports: a debt-ratio ceiling of 200 per cent excluding customer deposits, a three-year clean default record, fit-and-proper tests for officers and major shareholders, and AML staffing requirements; it removes the KRW 1,000,000 Travel Rule de minimis entirely and treats cross-border transfers of KRW 10,000,000 or more to foreign VASPs or private wallets as automatically suspicious. |
| Difficulty rating | Austria difficulty rating is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea difficulty rating is included in the £349 pass. |
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What changed recently
🇦🇹 Austria (verified 2026-08-01): Austria set 30 June 2026 as the end of its transitional regime (shorter runway than the EU default 1 July 2026 deadline), creating pressure for existing FM-GwG registered VASPs to secure full CASP authorisation; Bybit reported as licensed in Austria per exchange-tracking source OSL EU GmbH was authorised on 7 July 2026 (per ESMA's interim register), the eleventh Austrian CASP.
🇰🇷 South Korea (verified 2026-08-01): The 20 Aug 2026 tightening is now identifiable as Act No. 21358 (amendment to the FTRA/AML Reporting Act), promulgated 19 Feb 2026 and taking effect 20 Aug 2026. It removes the KRW 1,000,000 Travel Rule de minimis threshold and separately expands VASP entry screening: adds a statutory definition of major shareholders, extends fit-and-proper disqualification checks to major shareholders, adds financial condition, social credibility, organisational, staffing and IT review factors, and authorises KoFIU to attach conditions when accepting a VASP report. Existing registered VASPs must re-report under the amended Article 7 within 3 months of the effective date (by approximately 20 Nov 2026). Separately, a Foreign Exchange Transactions Act amendment creating cross-border VASP registration passed 7 May 2026 (effective date disputed, 2 Aug vs 2 Dec 2026). The FSC's implementing-decree package (public comment 30 March to 11 May 2026) adds entry screening for VASP re-reports: a debt-ratio ceiling of 200 per cent excluding customer deposits, a three-year clean default record, fit-and-proper tests for officers and major shareholders, and AML staffing requirements; it removes the KRW 1,000,000 Travel Rule de minimis entirely and treats cross-border transfers of KRW 10,000,000 or more to foreign VASPs or private wallets as automatically suspicious.
Quick answers
Who regulates crypto licensing in Austria and South Korea?
Austria: Finanzmarktaufsicht (FMA) Österreich. South Korea: Financial Services Commission (FSC), Korea's top financial policymaker; Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU, also referred to as FIU), an FSC-subordinate unit established 2001 under the FTRA that receives and processes VASP registrations and AML reporting; day-to-day supervision/inspection is delegated to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), which set up dedicated Virtual Asset Supervision/Investigation bureaus (announced 29 Nov 2023). FSC retains final sanctioning authority..
What licence do you need in Austria compared with South Korea?
In Austria the authorisation route is MiCA CASP Authorisation granted by the Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA); in South Korea it is VASP registration (not a discretionary licence) under the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (the 'FTRA'/AML Reporting Act, amended effective 25 Mar 2021), which requires: (1) ISMS certification from KISA (Korea Internet & Security Agency); (2) for KRW fiat on/off-ramp services, a bank-issued real-name verified account; plus fit-and-proper/AML program requirements. Layered on top since 19 July 2024 is the Act on the Protection of Virtual Asset Users (VAUPA), which adds customer-asset segregation, insurance/reserve, and market-abuse rules but does not replace the underlying FTRA registration.. The comparison table on this page lines the two up dimension by dimension.
Where can I see the full Austria vs South Korea comparison?
The interactive benchmark lets you pin either jurisdiction and add up to five peers; a Founder Pass or Pro subscription unlocks every gated figure with its source and verification date. This page stays free at /crypto/compare/austria-vs-south-korea.
Informational only, not legal advice. Every open figure carries its own verification date; verify with qualified counsel before acting.