Foreign Exchange Business Institutions

Overview

Financial institutions wishing to engage in foreign exchange business need only to register with the MOSF, providing that certain requirements as to capital, manpower and facilities are met. Such financial institutions are referred to as "foreign exchange business institutions" and, among them, banks are exclusively referred to as "foreign exchange banks."All commercial banks, including branches of foreign banks, and all specialized banks are registered as foreign exchange banks. They are permitted to conduct all types of foreign exchange business and are delegated by the MOSF with the authority for processing international transactions listed in the FETA. In principle, all payments and receipts must be made through foreign exchange banks. As of the end of Dec. 2017, there were 58 foreign exchange banks in Korea, consisting of 18 domestic banks and 40 foreign bank branches. Non-bank financial institutions are allowed to conduct foreign exchange business related with their own businesses.

Money changers may purchase foreign currencies and travelers' checks. They may also sell foreign currencies to nonresidents in exchange for the domestic currency which the nonresidents may have acquired during their current periods of sojourn in Korea.