Binance Launches $90 Million GOFi Fund and Expands Focus on Korean Payments

Binance has announced a $90.52 million crypto fund designated for compensating victims of GOFi while advancing its growth strategy through GOPAX, a South Korean exchange it now manages. This development is part of Binance's plans to facilitate institutional adoption and create payment infrastructure by 2026.

Key Takeaways

Binance launched a $90.52 million fund for GOFi victim compensation.
The exchange is expanding through GOPAX to enhance payment solutions in Korea.
Korean regulators are easing restrictions, which may lead to increased institutional adoption.
Binance is building infrastructure for institutional asset management and cross-border settlements.
The Digital Asset Basic Act is in progress, aiming to establish a clearer regulatory framework.

Binance Launches $90 Million GOFi Fund

This announcement comes after years of regulatory challenges following Binance's acquisition of a 67% share in GOPAX in February 2023. Authorities finally approved this ownership change in October 2025, amidst efforts to establish Korea as a central hub for global cryptocurrency operations.

As Korean regulators progressively ease restrictions on integrating cryptocurrency with traditional finance, they recently lifted a long-standing nine-year ban on corporate crypto investment and are working on the Digital Asset Basic Act, expected to pass this year.

Binance's goal is to set up systems for managing institutional treasury and supporting cross-border stablecoin settlements, prioritizing payment solutions for international visitors despite ongoing domestic limitations on crypto-backed transactions.

Institutional Growth and Payment Rails Drive 2026 Strategy

SB Seker, the head of Asia-Pacific at Binance, highlighted the significant institutional momentum in a recent video interview with The Korea Times.

“Twenty-three percent of last year’s global growth stemmed from institutional adoption,” Seker noted.

“We anticipate similar or even higher growth in Korea if regulatory developments progress positively.”

In addition to core activities in spot trading and digital asset products, Binance believes that Korean companies will start incorporating cryptocurrencies into their balance sheets as regulations become more defined.

To facilitate this, the exchange is looking to partner with accredited local payment providers for hosting inbound transactions from international visitors. Seker expressed hope that successful collaborations will influence regulators, despite existing domestic payment rules.

Binance's institutional focus aligns with its plan to launch Crypto-as-a-Service in September 2025—a white-label infrastructure solution that aids banks and brokerages with trading, custody, settlement, and compliance tools.

The rollout also follows the introduction of Institutional Loans in July, which grants verified corporate clients leverage of up to 4x through cross-collateralized credit lines across various accounts.

GOFi Compensation Faces Final Administrative Hurdles

On Thursday, GOPAX announced a compensation wallet after receiving regulatory approval for Binance's executive change filing last October.

The crypto assets in the wallet total about 130 billion won, showcasing progress in fulfilling obligations linked to the GOFi product, which was affected when nearly 1,000 bitcoins were frozen following the 2022 FTX collapse.

“We aim to demonstrate market transparency and confidence,” Seker remarked.

Nonetheless, under Korean law, repayments must go through GOPAX’s balance sheet, meaning Binance needs to ensure the company is adequately funded before any distributions occur.

The costs of converting crypto to fiat and vice versa may cause the final payouts to vary based on market liquidity and asset prices; however, Binance is committed to reducing these costs for GOFi creditors.

“After three years, we finally achieved a change of control. We still have some hurdles to clear,” Seker pointed out, mentioning that they still require full approval from minority shareholders to proceed with business operations at full capacity.

Regulatory Framework Takes Shape Amid Market Consolidation

Korea’s cryptocurrency regulatory framework is rapidly taking form as Binance re-establishes its presence.

The Democratic Party’s Digital Asset Task Force has recently confirmed that the upcoming Digital Asset Basic Act will mandate stablecoin issuers to maintain a minimum capital of 5 billion won ($3.5 million), aligning these requirements with those for electronic money companies.

Chairman Lee Eog-weon of the Financial Services Commission mentioned this week that the regulator is reviewing ownership caps of 15-20% for major crypto exchange shareholders, transitioning from a notification system to one of permanent approval.

This proposal has faced opposition from exchanges such as Upbit and Coinone, where controlling shareholders hold stakes exceeding 28% and 53%, respectively.

In a positive development, Korea has lifted its nine-year ban on corporate crypto investments, allowing listed companies to invest up to 5% of their equity capital in top 20 cryptocurrencies.

Additionally, the National Assembly passed legislation to create a legal framework for issuing and trading tokenized securities set to come into effect in January 2027.

Meanwhile, market expansion continues, with Coinbase exploring an investment in Coinone, and Naver Financial agreeing to acquire Dunamu, the operator of Upbit.