South Korea plans to launch tokenized deposits and wCBDC pilot this year, expecting the number of users to reach 100,000

ChainCatcher news, the Korea Times cited sources saying that later this year, 100,000 people will participate in a large-scale pilot for tokenized deposits. The report stated that the deposit tokens will be "similar to using vouchers," which is consistent with previously announced plans.

A year ago, the Bank of Korea announced plans to issue wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC) to support interbank settlements of bank tokenized deposits. The pilot involving up to 100,000 participants will begin in September or October of this year.

In June, two government agencies announced funding for the voucher project being developed by the central bank, where the deposit tokens can be used for welfare, culture, education, and other services. However, today's report indicates that the vouchers in the pilot will be used to purchase goods at convenience stores.

A banking official told the Korea Times, "Although the timeline seems slightly delayed compared to our initial expectations, we are working hard to launch the CBDC test involving 100,000 participants using deposit tokens by the end of this year, which will be a global milestone."