South Korea’s digital banking leader KakaoBank, part of the Kakao Group, has advanced its local currency-pegged stablecoin initiative to the active development stage, according to a report from Newspim on Wednesday.
The bank’s official website confirms the progress, as KakaoBank is recruiting blockchain service backend developers. Job requirements highlight expertise in smart contracts, token standards, transaction management, and operating full nodes, signaling a concrete step toward stablecoin implementation.
KakaoBank’s Digital Finance Strategy
At its H1 2025 earnings release, KakaoBank Chief Financial Officer Kwon Tae-hoon confirmed that the bank is exploring multiple avenues in digital finance, including the issuance and custody of digital assets.
Earlier, KakaoBank and other Kakao Group financial subsidiaries formed a won-stablecoin task force to discuss strategies for building a robust digital finance ecosystem.
In June, KakaoPay, the group’s payments subsidiary, filed six copyright applications for potential stablecoin ticker symbols — PKRW, KKRW, KRWP, KPKRW, KRWKP, KRWK — blending Kakao or KakaoPay branding with the Korean won (KRW).
Competition With Naver
KakaoBank’s initiative follows similar developments from South Korean tech giant Naver, which is reportedly preparing a wallet service for a local stablecoin project in Busan. Naver Financial, its fintech arm, is also in the process of merging with Upbit, South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.
Both Kakao and Naver plan to leverage their tens of millions of users: KakaoPay has 42 million members with 24 million monthly active users, while NaverPay reaches 30 million users monthly. South Korea’s total population is 51.7 million, highlighting the potential reach of these stablecoin projects.
Regulatory Context
The push for a local stablecoin market aligns with President Lee Jae Myung’s priorities, aiming to protect monetary sovereignty against the dominance of U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoins.
However, legislative progress has been slow. The Bank of Korea insists that only registered banks may issue won-pegged stablecoins, a stance that has prompted pushback from domestic players eager to participate in the emerging market.
KakaoBank’s move represents a significant step in South Korea’s race for digital finance leadership, signaling growing adoption of stablecoins by major tech and financial players in the region.