Lee announces youth asset formation support pledge... Expected to accelerate coin market activation

Presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party announced a youth pledge focusing on introducing virtual asset spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the 6th. The People Power Party also announced a virtual asset industry pledge at the party level last month. Attention is expected on whether follow-up measures to accelerate coin market activation, such as the second legislation on virtual assets after the June 3 presidential election, will gain speed.

Candidate Lee announced on SNS on this day a youth asset formation support pledge with such content. Candidate Lee promised on SNS to institutionalize the virtual asset spot ETF and establish an integrated monitoring system.

"I will create a safe investment environment so that young people can form assets and plan for the future with ease," said candidate Lee. He also presented a plan to reorganize the market under government leadership, saying, "I will induce a reduction in transaction fees and provide support for efficient asset accumulation."

Virtual assets are attracting attention as a high-yield investment destination for young people who feel limited by existing real estate, stocks, and savings/deposit financial techniques. Given the reality that millions are participating in the market despite high risks, institutionalization is considered an unavoidable task.

Candidate Lee's pledge is interpreted as an intention to bring virtual assets into the institutional framework to enhance safety. However, there is criticism that buying Bitcoin ETFs is not significantly different in terms of risk from directly purchasing cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. It is explained that even if other cryptocurrencies are bundled into an index, volatility does not decrease.

This is the first time candidate Lee has mentioned virtual assets as a presidential pledge. The Democratic Party announced a virtual asset pledge last year before the general election, including allowing spot ETFs and establishing an integrated monitoring system. Despite a landslide victory in the general election, there has been little progress since.

The People Power Party announced '7 Major Digital Asset Pledges' on the 28th of last month. Along with spot ETFs, they proposed abolishing the current one-exchange-one-bank regulation, allowing corporate and institutional investor transactions, and establishing a regulatory framework for stablecoins linked to currencies like the dollar. While candidate Lee and the Democratic Party approached from the youth perspective, the People Power Party approached from the industrial perspective, but both agree on speeding up the institutionalization of the virtual asset market.

Candidate Lee also announced youth job and housing pledges. He said, "I will ensure that military service experience is fairly recognized in all public institutions and mandatorously reflected in salary steps." He also promised to expand the National Pension military service credit to cover the entire service period.

There is also an analysis that the virtual asset pledge and military service support pledge announced by candidate Lee on this day are aimed at the 20-30-year-old male demographic, which is relatively weak in Democratic Party support.

Candidate Lee proposed customized public sales and high-quality public rental expansions as youth housing support policies. He stated, "I will significantly supply symbiotic public dormitories like the half-price dormitory in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, and Hanyang University to reduce housing costs and provide a stable living foundation." He also promised to expand the target for monthly rent support for non-home-owning young households and expand monthly rent tax credits.

As a youth job policy, candidate Lee proposed expanding job search activity support funds, providing one-time job search benefits for voluntarily resigning youths, etc. He also promised state support for the first national pension premium, easing income requirements for post-employment student loan repayment, and expanding interest exemptions.