Stablecoin settlement could bring payments onchain
Under the agreement, Eugene will contribute its securities operations experience and existing tokenized securities infrastructure, while BEATOZ will provide its hybrid blockchain technology. The companies will jointly review where stablecoins could be used across securities operations before deciding on potential infrastructure connections and subsequent cooperation based on the PoC results.
Eun Seok hoon, head of Eugene Investment & Securities’ AX innovation division, described the agreement as a “first step” toward infrastructure connecting tokenized securities and stablecoins.
“We will use our existing tokenized securities issuance platform to find concrete ways to apply it,” Eun said.
Eugene already has infrastructure that can be used for the trial. The brokerage built its tokenized securities platform in 2024 and participated in a tokenized securities pilot operated by the Korea Securities Depository in 2025. It is currently part of Hana Financial Group’s consortium working on a Korean won denominated stablecoin.
The trial comes as South Korea prepares to formally incorporate tokenized securities into its regulated capital markets system. Crypto.news previously reported that the country has laid out a three stage tokenization plan, with the first phase scheduled to begin when amendments to the Electronic Registration Act take effect on Feb. 4, 2027.
Selected privately pooled money market funds and institutional bonds are expected to become eligible for tokenization during the first phase, along with unlisted stocks issued through trust structures and publicly offered fractional investment securities. A later phase is expected to extend tokenization to publicly offered securities before the final stage introduces onchain payment infrastructure linked to stablecoins.
Existing licensed financial companies will be permitted to handle tokenized securities within the scope of their licenses. Qualifying issuers will be able to manage their own securities accounts, while distributed ledgers will serve as legally recognized records under the amended framework.
South Korea is building tokenized securities infrastructure
Technical work has been moving alongside the regulatory changes. Samsung SDS won a contract earlier this year to build the Korea Securities Depository platform that is expected to support tokenized securities when the new framework takes effect.
The system is expected to connect blockchain based distributed ledger records with KSD’s existing electronic securities account infrastructure. Planned functions include tokenized securities issuance, circulation checks, rights management and real time monitoring of issuance and circulation volumes. Samsung SDS previously conducted functional analysis for KSD in 2024 and built a test platform in 2025.
Private securities companies have been preparing their own systems ahead of the regulatory rollout. Hanwha Investment & Securities has completed a tokenized securities platform supporting Avalanche and Hyperledger Besu after beginning development with FairSquare Lab in 2025.
KSD’s infrastructure is being designed to connect with Avalanche, Hyperledger Besu and Hyperledger Fabric, giving participating securities companies multiple distributed ledger options as they prepare their systems for the incoming framework.
Institutional experiments are extending beyond the underlying securities records into the payment side of tokenized assets. South Korea has expanded deposit token trials to nine banks, with the tokens being examined for government payments, AI agent transactions and settlement of tokenized assets.
Financial firms test different tokenization models
Other South Korean financial companies are running separate trials before the 2027 framework takes effect. Shinhan Asset Management and Plume signed an agreement in August to test a won denominated tokenized fund backed by one of Shinhan’s ultra short term bond funds.
The proof of concept is being conducted offshore and excludes South Korean residents. No tokens will be issued or distributed as part of the test. Shinhan and Plume are examining investor whitelisting, know your customer checks, anti money laundering procedures and other onchain operating requirements.
BNK Investment & Securities has taken another route through a partnership with EverTreasure covering investment products backed by cultural content. BNK is responsible for arranging and distributing potential tokenized securities, recruiting investors and advising on regulatory requirements, while EverTreasure will identify underlying assets and connect blockchain technology to the products.
BNK is among the securities companies participating in Koscom’s joint tokenized securities issuance platform project. The companies plan to conduct due diligence on underlying assets and product structures before any potential offerings are made available to investors.
Eugene and BEATOZ have not disclosed a timetable for completing their stablecoin settlement PoC. The companies said the results will determine potential infrastructure integration and subsequent cooperation, while their initial work will focus on testing stablecoins for subscription payments and examining their possible use across other securities operations.
