
Toss tests Korean won stablecoin payments
- Toss has reportedly partnered with Optimism and Sunnyside Labs to test a Korean won stablecoin for institutional payments.
- The three-month pilot will assess settlement, compliance and privacy features for blockchain-based payment infrastructure.
- The project reflects growing interest among South Korean financial firms in stablecoin-based payment systems.
Viva Republica, operator of Toss, has reportedly partnered with Optimism and Sunnyside Labs to conduct a three-month proof of concept for a Korean won-based stablecoin payment system aimed at financial institutions.
According to Yonhap News, the pilot will use Optimism's OP Stack and Sunnyside Labs' Privacy Boost protocol to evaluate settlement controls, know-your-customer and anti-money laundering compliance, and transaction privacy on a public blockchain.
The proof of concept will assess “whether financial institutions can control the settlement process” while meeting regulatory compliance and privacy requirements, according to the Yonhap News report.
Toss reportedly plans to use the findings from the pilot as the basis for developing a compliant stablecoin payment infrastructure in South Korea, with Optimism providing blockchain infrastructure and Sunnyside Labs supplying privacy technology.
The initiative expands Toss' blockchain payment strategy, and as neither Viva Republica nor Optimism announced a financial impact on a listed company, there was no share price reaction.
Toss, which launched in 2015, said it has more than 30 million users, while South Korean financial institutions have increasingly explored stablecoin payments through pilot programmes.
The project follows stablecoin initiatives involving Shinhan Card, Visa and BC Card as payment providers continue testing blockchain-based settlement systems for commercial use.