Shinhan Asset Management Partners With Solana to Test Tokenized Won Funds

Shinhan Asset Management will work with the Solana Foundation and other global blockchain companies to test the feasibility of tokenizing won-denominated funds.

Shinhan Asset Management said Aug. 21 that it signed a four-party memorandum of understanding with the Solana Foundation, tokenization issuance platform Etherfuse and on-chain liquidity infrastructure provider Orca for a proof of concept on the full issuance and distribution process for a won-denominated tokenized fund.

The project assumes a structure in which overseas institutional investors buy a won-denominated ultra-short bond fund managed by Shinhan Asset Management and receive tokens representing the fund. The four parties will jointly test the full process from issuance through distribution.

They will examine know-your-customer and anti-money-laundering frameworks that comply with domestic and overseas regulations, blockchain operating models, compliance with South Korea's Foreign Exchange Transactions Act and the design of on-chain liquidity. The core question is whether a digital financial product structure similar to BlackRock's tokenized fund BUIDL can be applied to won-based assets.

Shinhan Asset Management aims to secure issuance and operational capabilities ahead of the launch of South Korea's security token offering regime. Boston Consulting Group, or BCG, and others have projected that the real-world asset tokenization market could grow to as much as $30 trillion by 2030.

Chief Executive Officer Lee Seok-won said the company will work with top-tier global partners to demonstrate issuance and distribution structures for won-denominated digital products. The goal, he added, is to secure verified capabilities that can be deployed immediately once the system takes effect and to lead the market for won-based digital financial products.

The MOU is non-binding and only confirms the parties' intent to cooperate. It does not commit them to launching an actual product. The proof of concept is also limited to an offshore market structure. Shinhan Asset Management said it will focus on technology verification and infrastructure preparation until South Korea's domestic security token framework takes effect.