Share this article
Bank of Korea to Exclude Seoul From CBDC Pilot Study Next Year: Report
Jeju, Busan and Incheon are in the running to be considered.
Updated Jul 31, 2023, 2:43 p.m. Published Jul 31, 2023, 2:43 p.m.
The Bank of Korea is set to exclude the South Korean capital Seoul from potential areas being used to test its central bank digital currency (CBDC), news outlet It.chosun reported on Monday.
The pilot is timed for next year and is likely to take place in Jeju, Busan or Incheon in conjunction with commercial banks, It.chosun said. The program will test the use of CBDC payments and explore CBDC distribution to the public.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
South Korea has been ramping up its CBDC exploration in recent years and has been working on the project since at least 2020. The central bank wrapped up the first phase of its CBDC simulation project, which tested functions such as manufacturing, issuing and distribution of a CBDC in a simulated environment, in December 2021.
Next year's pilot will enable people within the chosen region to use the CBDC solely within that region as a means of payment like a local currency, It.chosun said. Jeju, Busan and Incheon are all areas that have distributed a local currency in the past.
CoinDesk reached out to the Bank of Korea for further comment.
More For You
What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
More For You
CFTC Launches Digital Assets Pilot Allowing Bitcoin, Ether and USDC as Collateral
Acting Chair Caroline Pham has unveiled a first-of-its-kind U.S. program to permit tokenized collateral in derivatives markets, citing "clear guardrails" for firms.
What to know:
- The CFTC has launched a pilot program allowing BTC, ETH and USDC to be used as collateral in U.S. derivatives markets.
- The program is aimed at approved futures commission merchants and includes strict custody, reporting and oversight requirements.
- The agency also issued updated guidance for tokenized assets and withdrew outdated restrictions following the GENIUS Act.
Top Stories
