TLDR
- Shinhan Financial and Visa will test stablecoin issuance, transfers, remittances and redemption in South Korea.
- The partnership will also explore stablecoin use in card settlement, B2B payments and B2C transactions.
- AI-powered payment models form part of the agreement, although technical details have not yet been disclosed.
- The project remains in the pilot stage, with no stablecoin, launch date or commercial rollout confirmed.
- The partnership comes as South Korea develops its Digital Asset Basic Act, which covers stablecoins, crypto firms, and ETFs.
Shinhan Financial Group and Visa are preparing to test stablecoin payment infrastructure in South Korea as banks explore digital assets for settlement and transfers. The partnership will focus on issuance, remittance, redemption, and payment functions, while also examining AI-based payment models for the local market.
The companies signed a strategic memorandum of understanding in Seoul. The project remains in the testing stage, and neither side has announced a commercial stablecoin launch, pilot size, or launch date. No final payment product has been confirmed.
Shinhan Financial and Visa Test Core Stablecoin Functions
The first phase will use Visa’s stablecoin platform to test issuance, transfers and redemption within South Korea’s financial system. Shinhan Financial will assess how the technology can support domestic payment services while meeting local regulatory requirements.
The companies will also study how stablecoins may support cross-border remittances. The process could allow value to move between institutions before conversion into local currency, although technical details remain undisclosed.
Shinhan and Visa also plan to test stablecoin use in card payment settlement. The companies have not explained how digital assets would connect with current card networks, but the work will focus on fitting stablecoins into existing payment systems.
AI-based payments are also part of the agreement. The partners will examine business-to-business and business-to-customer payment models, while keeping the project focused on financial services rather than crypto trading.
Visa Expands Stablecoin Infrastructure Strategy
Visa has been expanding its stablecoin services across issuance, token movement and redemption. During its July 29 earnings call, the company said it was working on stablecoin infrastructure, tokenized deposits and payment applications.
Visa reported $11.6 billion in fiscal third-quarter revenue. The Shinhan project gives the payments company another banking partner in a market where stablecoin rules are still under development.
The pilot comes as South Korea advances its Digital Asset Basic Act. The proposed framework covers stablecoins, virtual asset service provider licensing and crypto exchange-traded funds.
Shinhan has also worked on other blockchain projects. Its asset management unit recently joined Solana Foundation, Etherfuse and Orca to test a won-denominated tokenized fund. Shinhan and Solana also partnered in April on stablecoin payment trials. Future commercial services will depend on pilot results and South Korea’s final regulatory rules.
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