Kakao and KB Kookmin Bank Propose Joint Ecosystem for Digital Assets

Kakao Group has proposed the formation of a roundtable involving financial institutions, fintech platforms, and virtual asset businesses to collaboratively design a digital asset ecosystem, including a won stablecoin. The initiative aims to foster cooperation among various stakeholders to build an ecosystem that encompasses the issuance and distribution of stablecoins as well as their practical applications.

On September 28, at the 'Next Finance Korea' event co-hosted with KB Kookmin Bank at the Westin Parnas in Seoul, Kakao Group unveiled its technology and business plans related to digital assets, including the won stablecoin.

Yoon Ho-young, CEO of Kakao Bank and co-chair of the Kakao Group Stablecoin Task Force, highlighted key objectives in his opening keynote, including the activation of won stablecoin distribution, the establishment of a digital asset-based payment and settlement infrastructure, and the creation of a coexisting ecosystem. He emphasized the necessity of inter-company collaboration to achieve these goals.

Son Kyung-hee, Vice President of Kakao Pay's Digital Asset Group, stated that Kakao Group has been evaluating the business viability of new digital asset initiatives since last year. She explained that the company is now in the stage of securing the technology needed for the issuance and distribution of the won stablecoin and is working on identifying and validating practical use cases.

She proposed the establishment of a roundtable for 'Next Finance Korea' that would include domestic and international financial institutions and companies. The plan is to create an open collaborative framework where banks, securities firms, fintech and platform companies, virtual asset businesses, and e-commerce and content companies can discuss the issuance and distribution of stablecoins and their integration with capital markets.

Shin Won-geun, CEO of Kakao Pay and co-chair of the Kakao Group Stablecoin Task Force, remarked, "To keep pace with the competition created by the combination of AI and blockchain, comprehensive efforts in issuance, distribution, regulation, and security are essential. It is time for us to move together to avoid falling behind in global competition."