Bank of Korea launches 24-hour won settlement pilot for foreign investors

The Bank of Korea (BOK) launched a pilot of its first 24-hour won settlement network, aimed at allowing foreign investors to settle won transactions outside South Korea’s normal banking hours.

On Monday, the central bank said its international wire network started trial operations with four domestic lenders: KB Kookmin Bank, Woori Bank, Hana Bank and Shinhan Bank. Full operations are scheduled for January 2027, when participation is expected to expand to other institutions and foreign banks.

The network will operate 24 hours a day, excluding weekends and public holidays. Foreign investors will be able to settle won transactions during business hours in their home countries through accounts with Registered Foreign Institutions for KRW Business, or RFI-Ks, without opening accounts directly with South Korean financial institutions.

The BOK said it expects the network to help strengthen the won’s international standing by improving foreign investors’ access to won settlement infrastructure.

The central bank has also experimented with tokenized settlement infrastructure through Project Agorá, led by the Bank for International Settlements. The project completed real-value cross-border payment trials in July using tokenized central bank reserves and commercial bank deposits, including the won.

The BOK is also advancing Project Hangang, a blockchain-based pilot that uses a wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) to settle tokenized commercial bank deposits. 

Related: South Korea to test tokenized government bonds with CBDC in 2027