Shinhan and Visa team up to test stablecoin issuance and B2B settlements in South Korea
South Korea's Shinhan Financial Group has partnered with Visa to pilot stablecoin issuance and business-to-business payment settlements within South Korea. The collaboration will test the infrastructure required to issue and circulate stablecoins, with a focus on streamlining cross-border and domestic B2B transactions. Shinhan Financial, one of South Korea's largest financial conglomerates, joins a growing list of traditional financial institutions exploring digital asset integration alongside global payments networks.
The pilot comes as South Korea advances its regulatory framework for digital assets. Seoul has been developing clearer guidelines around virtual asset issuance and custody, creating an environment that encourages institutional experimentation. Visa, meanwhile, has been expanding its stablecoin and blockchain-based settlement initiatives globally, having previously worked with issuers and financial institutions across multiple markets to test tokenized payment rails.
The partnership reflects a broader trend of banks and card networks moving beyond crypto custody toward active participation in stablecoin infrastructure. B2B settlements have emerged as a primary use case, given the potential to reduce transaction costs, settlement times, and reliance on legacy correspondent banking systems. If successful, pilots of this nature could accelerate institutional adoption of stablecoin-based payment systems in Asia's major economies.
Observers will be watching whether the pilot leads to a formally issued stablecoin product and how South Korean regulators respond to its outcomes, particularly as the country finalizes its broader virtual asset regulatory architecture.
Source: CoinDesk
