Bank of Korea Launches 24-Hour KRW Settlement Pilot

Odaily reports: The Bank of Korea (BOK) has launched its first 24-hour Korean won settlement network pilot, with KB Kookmin Bank, Woori Bank, Hana Bank, and Shinhan Bank participating. The network is scheduled to be fully operational by January 2027 and will expand to other institutions and foreign banks.

The network operates around the clock except on weekends and public holidays. Foreign investors can register foreign institution accounts through KRW services and settle KRW transactions during business hours in their own regions, without needing to open accounts directly with Korean financial institutions.

The Bank of Korea previously participated in Project Agorá, led by the Bank for International Settlements, and in July completed a cross-border payment trial using tokenized central bank reserves and commercial bank deposits. It is also advancing the blockchain-based Project Hangang, which utilizes wholesale central bank digital currency to settle tokenized commercial bank deposits. (Cointelegraph)