In a rather unusual way, South Korean presidential candidate Lee Jae-Myung of the Democratic Party (DP), is set to raise funds for his election campaign using a non-usable token. get (NFT).
According to reports, those who donate money to the campaign will have the party issue NFTs back to them, even as momentum builds in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. When collected, these NFTs will contain the candidate’s photo and his pledge.
The Korean Presidential candidate seems to want to connect with the youthful side of the country
As expected, this move is intended to attract the interest of young Koreans. This was confirmed by campaign official Kim Nam-kook as he said so in an interview with Yonhap News. He says:
“As millennials in their 20s and 30s are interested in emerging technologies, including virtual assets, NFTs and the metaverse, this type of fundraising could appeal to them.”
In addition to the idea of using NFT for campaigns, DP is also looking to integrate other burgeoning technologies such as accepting crypto donations.
As if to say that the party has reached a consensus on crypto, another member of the DP also recently announced that he will be accepting crypto donations.
Representative Lee Kwang-Jae mentioned that politicians and leaders should set an example by changing their views on NFTs and digital currencies, while embracing digital transformations.
Lee also noted that current policies are still far from digital, so much needs to be caught up in that regard.
Regulations surrounding NFTs in Korea are still unclear
Interestingly, the South Korean presidential candidate’s decision to use NFT in his election campaign comes amid regulatory uncertainty.
Recall that in November, the Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) announced that it would not regulate the NFT. However, just a few weeks later, the regulator reverted to its previous decision, announcing that in January 2022, the NFT would be subject to the tax.
Meanwhile, the new law will require paying a 20% tax on any digital asset income in excess of 2.5 million won ($2,100). However, the implementation of the tax was delayed for one year due to errors pointed out by the DP.