🇮🇸 Iceland vs 🇰🇷 South Korea: crypto licensing compared
Decision context and regulator route
Choosing between Iceland and South Korea for a crypto licence starts with who you will answer to: Central Bank of Iceland (Sedlabanki Islands), Financial Supervision (Fjarmalaeftirlitid), the sole competent authority under Act No. 101/2025 on one side, 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. on the other, via the Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorisation under MiCA (Regulation (EU) 2023/1114), given domestic legal effect by Act No. 101/2025 on markets for crypto-assets (markadir fyrir syndareignir) and 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. respectively. The public fields are shown below, with the full dated and sourced comparison included with access.
Iceland: verified 2026-08-15 · South Korea: verified 2026-08-15
| Dimension |
🇮🇸 Iceland
partly open
Verified 2026-08-15
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🇰🇷 South Korea
partly open
Verified 2026-08-15
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|---|---|---|
| Licence type | Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorisation under MiCA (Regulation (EU) 2023/1114), given domestic legal effect by Act No. 101/2025 on markets for crypto-assets (markadir fyrir syndareignir) | 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 | Central Bank of Iceland (Sedlabanki Islands), Financial Supervision (Fjarmalaeftirlitid), the sole competent authority under Act No. 101/2025 | 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 | Iceland capital requirement is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea capital requirement is included in the £349 pass. |
| Timeline to authorisation | Iceland timeline to authorisation is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea timeline to authorisation is included in the £349 pass. |
| Local substance | Iceland local substance is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea local substance is included in the £349 pass. |
| Application cost | Iceland application cost is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea application cost is included in the £349 pass. |
| Ongoing cost | Iceland ongoing cost is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea ongoing cost is included in the £349 pass. |
| Passporting | Iceland passporting is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea passporting is included in the £349 pass. |
| MiCA CASPs approved | Iceland mica casps approved is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea mica casps approved is included in the £349 pass. |
| Key restrictions | Iceland key restrictions is included in the £349 pass. | South Korea key restrictions is included in the £349 pass. |
| Recent changes | Iceland enacted Act No. 101/2025 on markets for crypto-assets on 24 December 2025, in force from 1 January 2026, giving MiCA (Regulation (EU) 2023/1114) legal effect domestically with the adaptations in EEA Joint Committee Decision 41/2025 (adopted 20 February 2025, in force in the EEA from 24 June 2025). The transitional period for providers active before 30 December 2024 ran until 1 July 2026 or until a licence was granted or refused, whichever came first. On 25 June 2026 the Central Bank granted Myntkaup ehf an operating licence as a virtual asset service provider, Iceland's first CASP authorisation. | 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 | Iceland 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
🇮🇸 Iceland (verified 2026-08-15): Iceland enacted Act No. 101/2025 on markets for crypto-assets on 24 December 2025, in force from 1 January 2026, giving MiCA (Regulation (EU) 2023/1114) legal effect domestically with the adaptations in EEA Joint Committee Decision 41/2025 (adopted 20 February 2025, in force in the EEA from 24 June 2025). The transitional period for providers active before 30 December 2024 ran until 1 July 2026 or until a licence was granted or refused, whichever came first. On 25 June 2026 the Central Bank granted Myntkaup ehf an operating licence as a virtual asset service provider, Iceland's first CASP authorisation.
🇰🇷 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 Iceland and South Korea?
Iceland: Central Bank of Iceland (Sedlabanki Islands), Financial Supervision (Fjarmalaeftirlitid), the sole competent authority under Act No. 101/2025. 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 Iceland compared with South Korea?
In Iceland the authorisation route is Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorisation under MiCA (Regulation (EU) 2023/1114), given domestic legal effect by Act No. 101/2025 on markets for crypto-assets (markadir fyrir syndareignir); 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 Iceland 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/iceland-vs-south-korea.
Informational only, not legal advice. Every open figure carries its own verification date; verify with qualified counsel before acting.