South Korea to modify 76-year-old law to classify cryptocurrencies as national assets

South Korea plans to modernize its 1950 National Property Act to formally recognize virtual currencies and intellectual property as national assets, signaling further institutional acceptance of crypto. The government also reaffirmed plans to pilot tokenized government bonds in 2027 and is exploring tokenized state-owned real estate, with an eye toward retail participation and lower transaction costs. The initiative ties into broader public-finance blockchain adoption, including tokenized deposits for government spending and the Bank of Korea’s ongoing CBDC trials. Legal amendments taking effect Feb. 4, 2027 will also give blockchain-based ledgers formal recognition as security registries. The policy shift is supportive for the crypto sector generally and may boost sentiment around bitcoin by reinforcing legitimacy and tokenization infrastructure.