Nearly eight months after a blanket ban on initial coin offerings (ICOs), South Korea’s National Assembly has reportedly made an official recommendation to allow domestic ICOs in the country.

According to a report from Business Korea on Tuesday, the national legislature, which consists of 300 members, formally proposed a motion to allow ICO activities to be carried out with related investor protection clauses.

The National Assembly’s special committee on the fourth industrial revolution even accused the government of “ignoring its own responsibilities” in responding to the blockchain field. Both Korea and China have completely banned ICO. Prior to this, many companies have moved outwards and transferred to ICOs in ICO-friendly jurisdictions such as Singapore and Switzerland.

In this context, Congress proposed legislative and policy recommendations and proposed a motion to allow ICO. At the same time, all parties are also concerned about whether the discussions between the Congress and the government on blockchain and ICO will accelerate.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution Committee also called on the government to form a working group composed of public officials and private experts to “ enhance the transparency of cryptocurrency transactions and establish a healthy trading order.”

The committee further pointed out:

“The administration also needs to consider setting up a new committee and building governance systems at its level in a bid to systematically make blockchain policy and efficiently provide industrial support. We will also establish a legal basis for cryptocurrency trading, including permission of ICOs, through the National Assembly Standing Committee.”

Earlier this month, a group of legislators headed by Hong Eui-rak, a Democratic member of the Republic of Korea, began drafting a bill in the hope of legalizing the country’s ICO.

“The purpose of this bill is to legalize ICO under the supervision of the government.” He said at the time, “The main purpose of legislation is to help eliminate the uncertainties faced by blockchain-related companies.”

The new head of South Korea’s financial regulator has chosen to focus on the “positive aspects” of cryptocurrencies and stated that the authorities will relax restrictions on cryptocurrencies. Since then, the attitude of Congress towards ICO has also changed.

Image via http://cxcglobal.hk/country/south-korea/

source: ccn.com