Korea names 24 innovative financial services, allowing cards for secondhand trades

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission said it designated 24 cases as new innovative financial services at its regular meeting on October 7, including a service that allows credit card payments in person-to-person secondhand trades. Both Maeil Business and Yonhap reported that Naver Financial’s person-to-person secondhand trading credit card safe payment service was among the designations. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]

Under the service, a buyer pays by credit card and Naver Financial holds the money until the buyer confirms the purchase, after which the funds are paid to the seller, Hankook Ilbo reported. The Financial Services Commission said buyers must be able to identify seller information, such as through a safe number, and that buyer card limits must be capped at under 1.5 million won per transaction to prevent abnormal financial transactions. Naver Financial must also post key details, including cancellation and refund procedures, and must block transactions suspected of being for purposes other than secondhand trading, according to Hankook Ilbo. [ 2 , 4 ]

Hankook Ilbo reported that a rule requiring payment gateway operators to let cardholders know a seller’s business name and address had blocked card payments between individuals. To address this, the commission allowed a special exception for providing contact information through a chat channel with the seller or a safe number, the report said. Card companies had asked financial authorities to respond to new payment demand, and the issue was among seven policy tasks proposed by the card companies’ labour council, Hankook Ilbo added. [ 4 ]

The commission also designated Toss Bank and Gwangju Bank’s joint loan service. Maeil Business reported that consumers apply through Toss Bank’s non-face-to-face channel, after which the two banks conduct loan screening in turn and calculate the limit and interest rate together; Yonhap reported that each bank bears half of the loan, and that the commission expects more reasonable conditions for users. Mirae Asset Securities’ mobile sign-up service for wrap-type CMA accounts was designated as well. Maeil Business and Yonhap both reported that video explanations and an AI chatbot will replace the previous procedure, which Maeil Business described as in-person and Yonhap described as in-person or by video call. [ 1 , 2 ]

Yonhap reported that 21 other cases were designated, including a generative AI service for internal employees and customers applied for by Kakao Pay and 13 other companies. The commission also extended IBK Investment & Securities’ overseas stock fractional trading designation by two years, and Yonhap said it will pursue legal revisions in line with SK Securities’ request for regulatory improvement; Maeil Business reported that the commission accepted the securities industry’s request and will revise laws so fractional overseas stock trading can be offered without a regulatory exception. Hankook Ilbo noted that innovative financial services are recognised as regulatory exceptions for two years, after which regulatory improvement procedures follow, citing card payment of monthly rent as a previous case that later became a formal ancillary business for card companies. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]