Shinhan Bank has initiated a technical verification (PoC) to introduce won-based stablecoin payment on its delivery app 'Ttaengeoyo'. The banking and IT industries are accelerating their moves to secure market dominance even before regulatory adjustments, creating an atmosphere of intensifying domestic stablecoin competition.
According to financial sources on the 22nd, Shinhan Bank has decided to pursue a PoC to experiment with the possibility of a won-based stablecoin payment service. PoC is a procedure to verify the stability of technology and business models before launching a full-scale service.
Shinhan Bank's strategy is to be prepared to issue stablecoins immediately once regulations are established. When the issuance basis is secured, they plan to mint won-based stablecoins and use them as a payment method on the delivery app 'Ttaengeoyo'. Currently, 'Ttaengeoyo' is a public delivery app with over 5.5 million subscribers, supporting local currency payments in cooperation with local governments. Internally, the bank believes that stablecoins can significantly improve the efficiency of such services.
Similar preparations are underway across the banking sector. Other major commercial banks like KB Kookmin Bank are also reviewing PoC, and the Open Blockchain and DID Association (OBDIA), which includes banks and private sectors, has begun developing detailed plans for joint stablecoin issuance.
IT companies are also accelerating their moves. NHN aims to play the 'hub' role in the stablecoin payment network and has started reviewing settlement business. NHN KCP and NHN Payco are conceptualizing a system that settles stablecoins from multiple issuers, working with blockchain companies. Their strategy is to establish themselves as intermediaries in the stablecoin payment network, similar to value-added communication network (VAN) companies in the credit card market.
