Korea’s crypto outflows reflect product gap, not stablecoin gap: First Digital CEO

Vincent Chok says broader investment access is key to keeping activity onshore

South Korea needs more than a won-denominated stablecoin to keep digital asset activity onshore, as more investors seek a wider range of products unavailable at home, according to Vincent Chok, CEO and co-founder of stablecoin issuer First Digital.

"The starting point is the demand for the products themselves," Chok said in a recent written interview with The Korea Herald.

First Digital is a digital asset financial services firm and the issuer of FDUSD, a dollar-backed stablecoin that sits among larger stablecoins traded on global crypto markets.

A net 14.92 trillion won ($10.5 billion) in stablecoins moved from Korea's five major crypto exchanges to overseas platforms from January 2025 through June this year, according to Financial Supervisory Service data recently submitted to Rep. Lee Jong-wook. Outflows exceeded inflows for 18 straight months, averaging 829.1 billion won a month.

Chok, who spoke at a National Assembly seminar on stablecoin policy in Seoul in May, believes the persistent flows reflect demand for offshore investment access rather than demand for stablecoins themselves.

He noted Korean crypto exchanges remain focused largely on spot trading, while offshore platforms offer perpetual futures, options, decentralized finance and tokenized real-world assets.