Bank of Korea Seeks Crypto Stress Responses From 31 Financial Institutions

What happened: The Bank of Korea sent its first dedicated crypto-risk stress survey on October 23 to 18 banks and 13 securities firms, with responses due November 4. The survey asks institutions to assess a major domestic exchange shutting down after a hack, a sharp and prolonged crypto downturn, and substantial losses at another financial institution; it also requests information on crypto teams, budgets, plans and investments. Recipients include KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH NongHyup, and the survey predates Binance’s October 29 attack.

Why it matters: That chronology matters because the exercise reflects an existing effort to map financial connections, rather than a measure launched in reaction to the Binance theft. Asking 31 institutions about both direct investments and losses elsewhere could help distinguish their own crypto exposure from potential transmission through counterparties, although the supplied reporting contains no survey results. The central bank said existing Financial Supervisory Service reports were insufficient for its purposes, but announced no new regulations and did not conclude that financial-stability risks had materialized.

Sources: CoinDesk; Crypto Briefing.