Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire (center) poses for a photo with Kakao Pay CEO Shin Won-keun (right) and KakaoBank CEO Yun Ho-young during a visit to Kakao Pay’s office in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, in April. Kakao Pay
Kakao and Toss are teaming up with Circle, the issuer of USD Coin (USDC), to build a won-denominated stablecoin ecosystem. The strategy is to develop digital financial services, including stablecoins, using Circle’s infrastructure and to strengthen the global connectivity of won-based digital assets.
Kakao, Kakao Pay and KakaoBank, along with Toss and Toss Bank, each signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Circle to cooperate in blockchain-based payment infrastructure and digital asset technology, the companies said on the 23rd. Through the MOU, the two sides plan to review the business feasibility of won-based digital assets and tokenized financial services utilizing Circle’s global stablecoin infrastructure.
Dante Disparte, Circle’s Chief Strategy Officer (CSO), stressed at a briefing held in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, on the same day, “Circle’s technology can connect won stablecoins to the global digital financial network.” He added, “Establishing a foundation that allows a country’s own currency to be used freely in a digital environment is a realistic way to protect monetary sovereignty.”