[INTERVIEW] Korea is more than retail crypto market: BitGo CEO

Global crypto companies often underestimate Korea by viewing it primarily as a retail trading market, but that perception overlooks the country’s sophisticated financial institutions, advanced technology infrastructure and growing demand for regulated digital asset services, BitGo CEO Mike Belshe said.

These factors could make Korea an important market for institutional crypto adoption, he said.

"The biggest issue is not whether there is interest," Belshe told The Korea Times in a written interview. "It is whether Korean institutions have the infrastructure and regulatory certainty to participate comfortably."

On Aug. 20, BitGo Korea, the Korean arm of the U.S.-based global digital asset infrastructure company, completed its registration as a virtual asset service provider with the Financial Intelligence Unit under the Financial Services Commission, the country’s top financial regulator, becoming the first foreign crypto company to enter the Korean market through direct registration.

Rather than entering the market by acquiring an already licensed local operator, BitGo established its own Korean entity in 2024. The move required the company to build its compliance, security and operational systems around Korean regulatory requirements from the outset. Hana Financial Group and SK Telecom also hold stakes of 25 percent and 10 percent, respectively, in BitGo Korea.