[Edaily Jung Yoon-yeong Reporter Seo Min-ji] As corporate participation in the virtual asset market expands, the digital asset custody market is also undergoing changes. With the number of companies seeking to hold virtual assets directly expected to rise, it is becoming increasingly important for providers to have management systems in place—going beyond simple asset storage—to meet corporate clients’ requirements for accounting, external audits, internal controls, and insurance.

SGA Co.,Ltd(049470), a publicly listed company specializing in Digital Asset Treasury Strategy (DAS) in Korea, recently switched the custodian for its Bitcoin holdings to blockchain infrastructure firm DSR CORP, taking these capabilities into account.

According to an E-Daily report on the 8th, BITPLANET signed a Bitcoin custody agreement with DSR CORP on the 2nd. The company plans to gradually transfer 300 Bitcoins previously held with its previous custodian to DSR CORP and will also entrust any additional Bitcoins purchased or mined directly to DSR CORP in the future.

The key factors BITPLANET considered when changing custodians were the ability to meet the accounting, auditing, and internal control requirements mandated for publicly listed companies. Since the company intends to hold Bitcoin as a financial asset for the long term, it determined that a system was necessary not only for secure storage but also to allow external verification of actual holdings and transaction records.

BITPLANET, which holds 300 bitcoins, is the first publicly listed company in South Korea to directly operate a bitcoin mining business. As its holdings grow, the importance of a management system capable of verifying the existence, ownership, and transaction history of digital assets reflected in financial statements during external audits also increases.

Once the corporate virtual asset market fully opens, it is expected that more companies—like BITPLANET—will select custodians based on criteria such as accounting and auditing practices, internal controls, and asset protection levels. In particular, for listed companies and financial institutions, a custodian’s security capabilities, as well as its asset verification systems and ability to provide compensation in the event of an incident, are likely to be key selection criteria.

The custody industry is also raising its asset protection standards in response. Digital asset custodian Korea Digital Asset (KODA) recently signed a digital asset-specific insurance contract with KB Insurance worth up to $40 million (approximately 60 billion won). This doubles the previous coverage limit of $20 million. The policy compensates for losses incurred when digital assets entrusted by customers are damaged, lost, or stolen.

Considering that the minimum compensation limit for insurance and reserves that custody operators must maintain under the current Virtual Asset User Protection Act is around 500 million won, KODA’s coverage exceeds the statutory standard by more than 100 times. In effect, the company has raised its coverage level beyond the statutory requirements to prepare for the custody of large-scale institutional assets.

DSR CORP also signed a dedicated digital asset insurance contract with SamsungFire&MarineInsurance last July for up to $20 million. The coverage applies to situations such as the loss of private keys for custodied assets due to disasters—including fire, earthquake, and flood—or external intrusion. In addition, the company is providing relevant materials and procedures to enable external auditors to verify custody records and on-chain data.

Last year, financial authorities announced a roadmap to gradually allow corporations to participate in the virtual asset market. The plan calls for allowing nonprofit corporations and virtual asset exchanges to open real-name accounts for the purpose of selling in Phase 1, followed by Phase 2, which would permit institutional investors—such as listed companies and professional investors—to trade for investment and financial purposes, and subsequently expand access to general corporations. However, the Phase 2 opening, which was originally targeted for implementation last year, has been postponed to date.

Despite the delay in opening the market, financial companies are continuing to invest in custodian firms. Infinite Block, a digital asset custodian serving corporations and institutions, recently completed a Pre-Series A funding round involving Sh Suhyup Bank, iM Bank, and telecommunications equipment manufacturer HFR. With Sh Suhyup Bank joining as a new investor and existing shareholder iM Bank making an additional investment, the two banks have become the joint second-largest shareholders, each holding approximately 15%.

There are also signs of a full-scale push into the institutional custody business. BitGo Korea recently completed its registration as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and has officially launched its domestic custody business. BitGo Korea is a domestic subsidiary established by BitGo—a U.S.-based digital asset custody and infrastructure provider for institutional clients—in partnership with Hana Financial Group and SKTelecom; Hana Financial Group holds approximately a 25% stake. The company plans to first provide custody services to financial institutions, asset management firms, corporations, and public institutions, and then expand its business scope to include wallet solutions and asset transfers.

An industry official stated, “Once corporations begin holding virtual assets such as Bitcoin as financial assets, simply storing them securely is no longer sufficient,” adding, “The ability to have the existence of the assets and their transaction history verified by external parties, as well as the capacity to support accounting, auditing, internal controls, and risk management, will be key criteria in selecting a custodian.”