KB Securities is joining hands with the Canton Foundation and Wavebridge to pursue a transition of South Korea's capital markets to distributed ledger-based systems. It plans to broaden cooperation to introducing distributed ledger-based financial products and building overseas distribution infrastructure by linking global financial infrastructure with domestic capital markets.

KB Securities said on June 5 it signed a memorandum of understanding on June 4 with the Canton Foundation and Wavebridge at its headquarters in Seoul's Yeouido district to support a distributed ledger-based transition in domestic capital markets.

The Canton Foundation supports the ecosystem and governance of Canton Network, a global distributed ledger network. Wavebridge is a global digital asset infrastructure company for corporate and institutional clients.

Under the agreement, the three companies will jointly review ways to apply distributed ledger-based infrastructure to domestic capital market transactions using Canton Network. In the mid to long term, they plan to expand cooperation to the domestic introduction of distributed ledger-based financial products and building overseas distribution infrastructure.

Based on this experience, the three aim to issue financial products backed by domestic financial assets and distribute them in global markets.

Canton Network is an open distributed ledger infrastructure designed to enable large-scale digitisation and trading of real-world assets while complying with traditional financial regulation. It goes beyond general public blockchain infrastructure by combining interoperability, selective disclosure and institutional-grade governance.

The partnership structure is based on specialised infrastructure and licences held by the three. KB Securities, as a licensed financial investment firm, will take part in designing standards for capital market transactions using Canton Network, based on its domestic and overseas institutional client network and expertise in product management.

Wavebridge, a digital asset business operator that has completed reporting to the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit, will be responsible for digital asset payment and settlement infrastructure. The Canton Foundation will support Canton Network ecosystem development, governance coordination and education.

KB Securities CEO Jindu Kang (강진두) said the transition to a distributed ledger-based capital market has already entered an operational stage globally, and a systematic response is needed to avoid falling behind this trend.

He added that KB Securities will make its best efforts to introduce a standard model for tokenised securities (STO) and digital asset infrastructure among domestic securities firms.