Tether Accelerates Expansion into South Korea, Submits Trademark Application for Company Name and Logo

May 19 – Tether is accelerating its push into the South Korean crypto market, with its latest trademark moves signaling it’s laying the groundwork for a local presence, industry watchers say. The stablecoin giant recently filed 7 trademark applications in Korea, covering its brand name, official logo, and its gold-backed stablecoin Tether Gold. Notably, this marks a shift from Tether’s prior Korean trademark efforts, which only focused on registering stablecoin product names—this time, it’s expanding to full brand identity assets like its core logo. Industry insiders frame the move as a proactive step aligned with Korea’s upcoming rules under the Act on the Reporting and Use of Specific Financial Transaction Information (the Virtual Asset Service Provider, or VASP, Act), which will require overseas stablecoin issuers to establish local branches to operate their services domestically. Tether’s action stands out because it’s acting faster than key rival Circle, analysts note. For context, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire visited Korea back in April, meeting with local financial holding firms and crypto exchanges to discuss potential partnerships. At the time, Allaire called Korea “one of the most vibrant crypto markets globally—and one of the countries most poised to build a mature stablecoin market long-term.”