Bank of Korea Advances CBDC Deposit Token Plan

Korea Crypto News

The Bank of Korea is moving its central bank digital currency, or CBDC, project further toward daily use. The bank has added more lenders to its testing program and is preparing a separate trial that uses deposit tokens for government payments.

The pilot is called Project Hangang. It tests bank-issued deposit tokens backed by central bank infrastructure to see whether the system can support government subsidy payments and everyday transfers nationwide.

The Bank of Korea

the second phase of the pilot on March 18, 2026, expanding to nine commercial banks after adding Kyongnam Bank and iM Bank to the seven lenders that took part in the first round.

The new phase tests large-scale, won-pegged deposit tokens built on a wholesale

layer, aiming to cut transaction costs for both large companies and small merchants that pay credit card fees.

Deposit Token Pilot Expands to More Banks

Under Project Hangang, a wholesale CBDC issued to financial institutions works alongside blockchain-based deposit tokens distributed to users, combining traditional banking with newer digital payment tools. Kim Dong-seop, who leads the Bank of Korea's Digital Currency Planning Team,

the setup as “a middle ground or a compromise between a CBDC and a stablecoin.”