Woori Bank Becomes First Major Korean Lender to Enter Crypto Airline Ticket Settlements

Using Its Woori Safe Settlement Infrastructure

Offering Airlines a Digital Wallet Service

Woori Bank has become the first major South Korean bank to enter the market for airline ticket payments made with virtual assets, or cryptocurrencies. Under the model, the bank handles settlements when airlines allow customers to pay for tickets with Bitcoin and other tokens.

According to the financial industry on May 11, Woori Bank has entered the crypto airline ticket settlement market through its in-house platform, Woori Safe Settlement. The bank has begun approaching airlines interested in using the platform, offering to process settlements if they adopt virtual assets and other means of payment for airline tickets. It is the first among South Korea’s five major commercial banks to complete settlement-business registration and move into the airline ticket settlement market.

A wider rollout of digital wallet services in the airline market could help consumers gain access to sharply discounted tickets. In South Korea, a separate financial processor is needed between ticket payment and the actual issuance of the ticket. Airline industry officials say Woori Safe Settlement can enable deeply discounted ticket sales by handling settlements between payment and issuance. Eastar Jet has used the system since February 2025 to run promotions offering discounts of up to 98%.

Following Eastar Jet, Woori Bank has also taken on some settlement work for AirAsia and Aero K. It has signed settlement contracts with NOL Universe, which accounts for about 30% of South Korea’s online travel agency market, and with LG Uplus.

Beyond aviation, Woori Bank is expanding the business to four domestic pharmaceutical companies and 21 drug wholesalers. It also plans to provide Woori Safe Settlement for To the Moon, the bank’s own performance ticketing platform, which is set to launch a dedicated app soon.

Woori Safe Settlement charges no settlement fees. That follows instructions from Woori Bank Chief Executive Officer Jeong Jin-wan to waive fees for businesses serving small and medium-sized enterprises, including small travel agencies, as part of the bank’s inclusive-finance push. The bank aims to generate returns by managing funds while they remain on deposit. Woori Bank processed 86,000 payment transactions through April this year, surpassing all of last year’s total in four months. It also raised its annual transaction target to more than 100 billion won ($72.5 million) from 70 billion won ($50.7 million).

Oh Yu-rim, Hankyung.com reporter, our@hankyung.com