KakaoBank and Busan Bank signed an agreement to pursue a joint loan business to expand financial support for small and medium-sized enterprises and vitalise the regional economy, they said on April 14. The two lenders held a signing ceremony on April 13 at Busan Bank’s headquarters and agreed to cooperate on launching joint loan products for SMEs and sole proprietors, expanding financial support and developing new financial services.

The Bank of Korea is accelerating its central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot, Project Hangang, as legislation on a digital assets framework law stalls in parliament. The project has moved into a second phase focused on building a basis for commercialising deposit tokens, expanding participating banks and planned QR-code payments at more stores. The bank will also test paying an electric-vehicle charging subsidy in deposit tokens, a first for public finance, while debate continues over stablecoin oversight.