KB Financial Completes Won Stablecoin Pilot, Cuts Remittance Time to Three Minutes

Source

Korea Economic Daily

Summary

KB Financial Group said it has completed a proof of concept covering the full process of financial services using a won-denominated stablecoin.
The group said overseas remittances were completed within three minutes using Kaia's on-chain liquidity, while cutting fees by 87%%.
KB Financial said it plans to prepare so it can immediately launch won stablecoin-based financial services once digital-asset legislation takes effect.

Forecast Trend Report by Period

Collaboration with KG Inicis, Kaia and OpenAsset

Remittance fees cut by 87%

QR payments at offline kiosks

KB Financial Group said May 17 that it has completed a proof of concept covering the full process of financial services using a won-denominated stablecoin.

The group worked with electronic payments company KG Inicis, global layer-1 blockchain platform Kaia and digital-asset solutions company OpenAsset on an integrated pilot linking the entire service flow for a won stablecoin. The project covered issuance, offline payments, merchant settlement and overseas remittances. It focused on shifting the internal settlement structure to a blockchain-based system while keeping the customer experience unchanged.

For overseas remittances, KB Financial tested a process that converted a won stablecoin into a dollar stablecoin through Kaia's on-chain liquidity, then sent the funds to an actual bank account through a local partner in Vietnam. The entire transfer was completed within three minutes. The same process typically takes several hours to several days under the existing SWIFT system. Fees were reduced by about 87%.

The real-world payments model was implemented through offline kiosk payments at coffee chain Hollys. When users make QR-code payments without installing a separate digital wallet, a blockchain smart contract is automatically executed during settlement.

Based on the results of the test, KB Financial plans to prepare to roll out financial services using a won stablecoin as soon as digital-asset legislation takes effect. A company official said South Korea's financial industry needs to proactively build operational capabilities as the global digital-asset market is rapidly being reshaped. KB Financial aims to combine proven stability and trusted financial infrastructure with blockchain technology to offer digital financial services that customers can use in everyday life.

Kim Jin-seong, Hankyung.com reporter, jskim1028@hankyung.com