South Korea has completed live cross-border payment tests under Project Agora, the Bank for International Settlements–coordinated initiative bringing together central banks and commercial banks to build a shared tokenized settlement infrastructure. The results advance the country's digital payment capabilities and demonstrate interoperability between domestic and international banking systems on a shared platform.

Cross-border payments traditionally rely on correspondent banking networks, where multiple intermediary banks process transactions across time zones and regulatory jurisdictions, adding cost, complexity, and settlement time. By enabling banks to transact directly using tokenized reserves on a unified ledger, Project Agora aims to reduce these frictions while preserving the role of central bank money in settlement.

The Bank of Korea utilized tokenized central bank reserves across multiple transaction types and confirmed stable platform operations throughout the exercise. The tests linked domestic banks with international institutions across six major global currencies.

Twenty-eight central banks and financial institutions participated in the trial, including five commercial banks from South Korea. KB Kookmin, NongHyup, Shinhan, Woori, and Hana Bank represented the country during the testing phase. Participants processed transactions totaling approximately 800,000 Swiss francs across 17 separate payment scenarios.

The scenarios covered single-currency payments, dual-currency payments, foreign exchange settlements, and internal group transfers. Participants also completed payment-versus-payment settlements, which mitigate settlement risk by exchanging both legs of a transaction simultaneously—a structural improvement over traditional sequential settlement, where time-zone gaps can leave one party exposed. The results indicated that Project Agora can support complex cross-border banking processes under near-live operational conditions.

Bank of Korea Tests Tokenized Interbank Transfers

The Bank of Korea conducted a 20 million won interbank transfer in collaboration with NongHyup Bank and Shinhan Bank. The central bank issued, transferred, and redeemed tokenized reserves after receiving payment instructions from both lenders. The transaction demonstrated how South Korea could connect central bank money with tokenized commercial banking systems.

During the test, officials manually linked Project Hangang with the Bank of Korea's existing financial network. This connection enabled the central bank to assess interoperability between domestic systems and the broader Agora platform. South Korea intends to pursue further work on direct links and more automated settlement processes.

In a separate milestone, KB Kookmin Bank completed a yen-based deposit token payment test with Japan's MUFG Bank. The trial made KB Kookmin the first commercial bank in South Korea to complete such an overseas payment test. The bank plans to participate in subsequent Project Agora phases and expand its cross-border token settlement operations.

Project Hangang Anchors National Digital Payment Strategy

Project Hangang remains central to South Korea's broader digital payment strategy and wholesale central bank digital currency development. The initiative connects deposit tokens with existing payment infrastructure, allowing banks to issue digital wallets while merchants continue using established point-of-sale terminals without replacement—an approach designed to ease adoption by avoiding costly hardware overhauls.

Government agencies also plan public-sector payment tests before integrating the system with the national digital finance platform.

South Korea maintains a clear distinction between deposit tokens and stablecoins, reflecting the different legal and financial structures governing each model. A wholesale central bank framework supports deposit tokens that represent commercial bank deposits.

Stablecoin regulation proceeds on a separate track through the proposed Digital Asset Basic Act. Financial authorities intend to consolidate several pending proposals covering issuance, trading, disclosures, governance, and operational controls.

South Korea will continue Project Agora testing and expand into scenarios not included in the latest exercise. The next phases are expected to clarify how tokenized settlement platforms integrate with live regulatory frameworks and whether the architecture can scale to production-grade volumes.