Alliances among banks, fintechs, platforms and blockchain firms over won stablecoins have accelerated in the second half of the year.

The industry has tallied more than 12 cases in the first half in which South Korean companies joined stablecoin-related memorandums of understanding and began or completed proofs of concept. In the second half, more than 7 additional cases were disclosed in 44 days.

Most recently, Hecto Innovation signed an MOU with Bitoz to cooperate in stablecoins and blockchain infrastructure. The two will implement welfare points paid to Hecto Group employees as test on-chain assets and verify the full process, from issuance and distribution to payments, settlement and burning.

Hecto Innovation is pursuing a plan to participate as a validator on the Bitoz network and plans to expand the supply of digital-asset wallets to financial companies. Before that, it is at a stage of checking the stablecoin operating structure by using points in a limited environment.

A feature of second-half partnerships is that the scope of verification has become more specific in payment and settlement areas that consumers and merchants face.

Coupang and Woori Bank completed a real-time settlement PoC using a won stablecoin last month. In an environment modeled on the Coupang Eats order and settlement flow, they verified a method that keeps the existing card payment network while applying a stablecoin at the settlement stage, as well as a method that processes the entire process from payment to settlement on-chain.

Woori Bank handled on- and off-ramp functions that link bank accounts and e-wallets to convert between won and stablecoins. The verification used Tempo, a payment-focused blockchain backed by Coupang.

NHN KCP also unveiled a payment and settlement model linked to Payco on an Avalanche-based, payment-focused mainnet built with Ava Labs. When users pay with test stablecoins held in their Payco wallets, transaction information is recorded on the blockchain and settlement funds are automatically sent to a merchant wallet. It also demonstrated hourly on-chain automatic settlement, a merchant admin page and remittance functions between overseas wallets.

BC Card completed a PoC with Coinbase and Waveridge that connects overseas digital-asset wallets to South Korea's card payment network. Foreign tourists pay at BC Card QR merchants in South Korea using the dollar stablecoin USDC held in a Base wallet, and merchants receive settlement in won. It also verified the process of sending USDC back to users' wallets when cancellations and refunds occur.

Partnerships between platforms and financial companies and global stablecoin firms are also expanding. Toss signed an MOU with Kyobo Life Insurance to build a digital-asset ecosystem and develop financial services. The two plan to draw up specific use cases and then establish a standard model through a PoC.

Earlier, Toss and Toss Bank, and Kakao Group, each signed strategic MOUs last month with Circle, the issuer of the dollar stablecoin USDC. Toss and Toss Bank are reviewing digital wallets, overseas payments and remittances, and real-time settlement infrastructure.

Kakao Group is also seeking ways for major affiliates including KakaoBank to use Circle's global payment infrastructure for overseas remittances, merchant settlement, and links between existing financial systems and blockchains.

Cross-border remittances have also emerged as a key area for verification. K Bank signed an MOU with BPMG and Hong Kong's HashKey Group in overseas remittances and payments and is reviewing a plan to pursue a blockchain-based remittance PoC between South Korea and Hong Kong. The plan also includes expanding business scope to Asia by linking with remittance networks that HashKey Group is building in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia.

Hyundai Card and Hyundai Motor completed a stablecoin remittance PoC between their U.S. and Mexico entities. Hyundai Motor's U.S. unit converted dollars to USDT, remitted the funds to the Mexico unit and then converted them back to dollars.

Hyundai Card also plans to pursue a second PoC for its European entities with Circle and Visa, linking local currencies and stablecoins.

This trend reflects a move to secure capabilities to connect existing financial infrastructure with on-chain funds, rather than directly issuing stablecoins. The market is being formed in a direction in which traditional financial companies, rather than being replaced by blockchains, maintain existing customers, merchants and payment networks while absorbing stablecoins as a new means of moving funds, according to an analysis.

The current Virtual Asset User Protection Act focuses on protecting user assets and regulating unfair trading. Second-stage digital-asset legislation that would address stablecoin issuers and approval requirements, reserve-asset management and redemption obligations is still at the discussion stage.

The Bank of Korea says it should first allow issuance to bank-centered consortiums, considering the impact on financial stability and monetary policy, and then gradually expand participation. Fintech and platform industries, by contrast, argue that participation by non-bank operators with actual distribution networks and technological capabilities is necessary.

Until rules on issuers and reserve assets are finalized, companies' competition is expected to continue around closed PoCs and infrastructure partnerships. After legislation, whether companies can convert the wallets, payment networks, merchants and overseas partners they have secured into actual services is expected to determine market leadership.

Hong Jin-hyun (홍진현), an analyst at Samsung Securities, said, "The trend of stablecoins being incorporated into the existing financial industry's payment and settlement infrastructure is continuing." He said, "Future competitiveness depends on how efficiently they can connect existing customers, payment networks and financial products to on-chain funds."