The symbols of Bitcoin and the stablecoin Tether (USDT) are displayed at a cryptocurrency store in Hong Kong on July 29, 2025. AFP/YONHAPBarred from using stablecoins for corporate payments domestically, Korean companies are testing the digital currency abroad to cut cross-border transfer times from hours to minutes.
Stablecoin payments for goods and services from Korean companies totaled about $620 million from January 2021 through September 2026, according to data from New York-based blockchain data platform Allium, a sign that stablecoins are beginning to function as a new rail for corporate money movement.
With Korea's regulatory framework for stablecoins still taking shape, companies are conducting these transactions offshore, using overseas affiliates to convert funds into U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoins, make cross-border payments and convert the funds back into dollars.
But some warn that once companies establish networks and business relationships around those offshore channels, it could become harder to reshore that activity.
Stablecoin payments head offshore as rules lag
Lower costs and faster transaction times compared to traditional remittance channels are prompting export companies to turn to stablecoin payments.
In July, Hyundai Motor America converted $20,000 into the dollar-pegged stablecoin USDT and transferred it to its Mexican affiliate, which then converted the funds back into U.S. dollars.
The entire process, including the cross-border transfer and transaction verification, was completed in just seven minutes, compared to as long as four hours through traditional banking channels. Hyundai Card, which handled the automaker affiliate's transaction, said it plans to conduct additional tests with its European affiliates through partnerships with Circle and Visa by the fourth quarter.
“We were able to significantly reduce the time and money used for cross-border transactions,” said a Hyundai Card representative. “With the regulatory framework in Korea not yet clear, we’re testing the system abroad and plan to adopt it once a legal framework is established in Korea.”
Fees for remittances between the United States and Mexico using stablecoins are under 1 percent, compared to an average of more than 6 percent through traditional channels, according to a World Trade Organization report published in September.
The shift extends beyond large conglomerates. Many smaller Korean companies are converting stablecoins in Hong Kong through overseas partners and remitting the proceeds in dollars, often at the request of overseas trading partners, according to the Seoul Economic Daily.
Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA), the company's first dedicated mass-production EV plant in southeast Georgia YONHAPAn African iron-ore exporter, for example, is reportedly seeking to receive payment from a Korean manufacturer in dollar-pegged stablecoins. Importers of Korean home appliances and used cars in Russia and Latin America are also reportedly paying for Korean goods in stablecoins.
Such demand comes as stablecoin use expands rapidly worldwide. Stablecoin payments were running at an annualized $390 billion as of December 2025, more than double 2024 levels, according to a McKinsey & Company report. Business-to-business payments accounted for the largest share at $226 billion, followed by consumer-to-consumer payments at $77 billion and consumer-to-business payments at $76 billion.
“Companies are eager to use stablecoins for payments, but regulations are preventing them from doing so,” said Kim Hyoung-joong, director of the cryptocurrency research center at Kookmin University. “The problem is particularly acute for small businesses, which can struggle to meet banks’ requirements for cross-border payments,” he added. Such requirements can include transaction documentation and foreign-exchange procedures.
Currently, corporate entities permitted to sell virtual assets are largely limited to nonprofit organizations and cryptocurrency exchanges. Financial regulators last year said they would gradually allow corporations to trade virtual assets, but that plan has yet to be extended to listed companies and professional investment firms.
Rules governing stablecoins are expected to be included in the Digital Asset Basic Act, the second phase of Korea’s crypto regulation, which the Financial Services Commission plans to submit by November.
Outpaced by overseas networks and partners
Beyond a handful of pilots, Korean companies have largely struggled to move into real-world applications, as direct corporate access to stablecoin transactions remains restricted at home.
The Tether (USDT) logo on a cushion is displayed at a Bithumb exchange office on Feb. 6. BLOOMBERG/YONHAPPosco International is working with Hana Financial Group and Dunamu to develop blockchain-based cross-border remittances, while Shinhan Bank has completed a proof of concept with LX International that replicated the full process of corporate cross-border remittances using stablecoins. Coupang has partnered with Woori Bank to test real-time settlement using won-backed stablecoins.
Some warn that delays in establishing a regulatory framework for stablecoins could erode the competitiveness of Korean exporters while allowing overseas networks to become entrenched, making them harder to draw back to Korea later.
“If Korea’s regulatory framework for stablecoins continues to lag, and connections among market participants become entrenched overseas such as in Hong Kong and Singapore that have moved ahead with their regulatory regimes, it could become difficult to bring those established overseas networks back to Korea even after the country introduces its own legislation,” said an industry source speaking on the condition of anonymity.
The formation of those overseas networks is already visible in Korean companies' stablecoin tests. Hyundai Card and Hyundai Motor Company, for example, worked with stablecoin issuer Tether, Switzerland-based Axiym and U.S.-based Ava Labs, the developer of the Avalanche blockchain, for its cross-border transaction, while Shinhan Bank partnered with the Switzerland-based Solana Foundation.
“If adoption of stablecoins is delayed, Korean companies could face higher transaction costs, potentially undermining the competitiveness of the country’s export-oriented businesses,” said Song Min-taek, an adjunct professor at Hanyang University’s Graduate School of Business. “This could ultimately lead Korean companies to route more of their payments through overseas networks even after the regulatory framework has been established at home.”
That could mean a larger share of the fees and financial activity generated by those transactions flows to foreign payment and financial firms, while Korean companies face higher barriers than its global competitors already using stablecoins, as traditional cross-border transfers typically involve foreign-exchange costs, intermediary-bank fees and delays that can tie up funds.
“As Korea’s overall industrial competitiveness is currently being bolstered by its strength in semiconductors, now is the opportune time to develop and regulate a won-pegged stablecoin to capitalize on that strength,” Prof. Song added.