Korea's Digital Finance: Outdated Rules Block AI Innovation

Korea's digital finance success is at risk of stalling. This is because outdated network separation rules are now blocking innovation in AI and cloud computing. Here's the thing: Korea has seen dramatic advancements in digital finance. For example, the average daily value of mobile payments has more than tripled in six years. Simple transfers using phone numbers also increased over fourfold during the same period, reaching 7.42 million transactions a day in 2025. What's interesting is that open banking and MyData have also reshaped financial services. Korea's open banking system reached 30 million subscribers and 100 million registered accounts within two years. The bottom line: Reforms are needed to support AI, cloud, and stronger cybersecurity, ensuring continued progress in the digital finance sector.