iM Financial Group said on April 20 it successfully completed what it called South Korea’s first proof-of-concept for a blockchain-based prepaid payment service with iM Bank and fintech lab startup Buchigo. It said the service was built within the framework for prepaid electronic payment instruments under the Electronic Financial Transactions Act, meeting real-name verification, anti-money laundering and user protection rules. The group said the trial confirmed commercial-grade stability and processing speed.

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.