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Shinhan Financial and Visa Partner to Test Stablecoin Issuance in Korea
31 Aug 2026, 10:30
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The strategic agreement will explore stablecoin issuance, remittance and redemption for the Korean market, adding a major domestic bank to Visa's growing stablecoin push.
<p>Shinhan Financial Group, one of South Korea's largest banking groups, has signed a strategic agreement with Visa to test stablecoin issuance, remittance and redemption specifically for the Korean market, adding a major domestic bank to Visa's expanding global stablecoin infrastructure push.</p>
<p>The partnership fits into a broader pattern of South Korean financial institutions moving to establish stablecoin capabilities as the country positions itself, alongside Japan, as a potential leader in stablecoin adoption in 2026. South Korea's combination of high retail crypto engagement, sophisticated digital banking infrastructure, and increasingly formalized crypto regulatory framework -- including the country's planned Novel Securities Market and upcoming Token-Securities Act -- has made it an attractive market for both domestic and international payment players to test stablecoin products.</p>
<p>For Visa, the Shinhan partnership extends a stablecoin strategy that already includes a settlement program running at a $4.5 billion annualized rate globally, alongside the company's participation in the newly launched Agentic Payments Alliance working to establish standards for AI-driven commerce. Partnering directly with a major domestic bank in a specific market like Korea gives Visa a more localized pathway for stablecoin adoption than relying purely on its global card network infrastructure, potentially allowing for products better tailored to Korean regulatory requirements and consumer payment habits.</p>
<p>Shinhan's participation also reflects a broader trend of established Asian banks moving beyond cautious observation of stablecoins toward active experimentation, following similar moves by German banks pursuing MiCA authorization in Europe and various financial institutions building out crypto capabilities across multiple jurisdictions this year. That shift suggests traditional banks increasingly view stablecoin infrastructure as core payments technology worth developing in-house capability around, rather than a category to avoid or leave entirely to crypto-native competitors.</p>
<p>Specific details about the pilot's scope, timeline, or planned scale of stablecoin issuance under the Shinhan-Visa agreement were not disclosed. As with other bank-led stablecoin pilots this year, the practical significance will likely depend on whether the initiative progresses from a limited test into a genuinely scaled product used by Shinhan's substantial existing customer base across South Korea.</p>
<p>The partnership fits into a broader pattern of South Korean financial institutions moving to establish stablecoin capabilities as the country positions itself, alongside Japan, as a potential leader in stablecoin adoption in 2026. South Korea's combination of high retail crypto engagement, sophisticated digital banking infrastructure, and increasingly formalized crypto regulatory framework -- including the country's planned Novel Securities Market and upcoming Token-Securities Act -- has made it an attractive market for both domestic and international payment players to test stablecoin products.</p>
<p>For Visa, the Shinhan partnership extends a stablecoin strategy that already includes a settlement program running at a $4.5 billion annualized rate globally, alongside the company's participation in the newly launched Agentic Payments Alliance working to establish standards for AI-driven commerce. Partnering directly with a major domestic bank in a specific market like Korea gives Visa a more localized pathway for stablecoin adoption than relying purely on its global card network infrastructure, potentially allowing for products better tailored to Korean regulatory requirements and consumer payment habits.</p>
<p>Shinhan's participation also reflects a broader trend of established Asian banks moving beyond cautious observation of stablecoins toward active experimentation, following similar moves by German banks pursuing MiCA authorization in Europe and various financial institutions building out crypto capabilities across multiple jurisdictions this year. That shift suggests traditional banks increasingly view stablecoin infrastructure as core payments technology worth developing in-house capability around, rather than a category to avoid or leave entirely to crypto-native competitors.</p>
<p>Specific details about the pilot's scope, timeline, or planned scale of stablecoin issuance under the Shinhan-Visa agreement were not disclosed. As with other bank-led stablecoin pilots this year, the practical significance will likely depend on whether the initiative progresses from a limited test into a genuinely scaled product used by Shinhan's substantial existing customer base across South Korea.</p>