According to reports from MoonPay, the company has officially launched MoonPay Korea as part of its strategic expansion into the South Korean market. As reported by MoonPay, the launch of MoonPay Korea will connect the payments and stablecoin infrastructure it has built in global markets with domestic financial services, with the company aiming to develop South Korea into a key base for future expansion across Asia. The company unveiled its strategy at an official launch event in Seoul on September 29, detailing collaborations with Woori Bank, KB Financial Group, KakaoBank, and financial technology company Finger. As reported by MoonPay, the company plans to test services with these Korean companies before connecting them to its international payment and digital asset network.
A central component of MoonPay's Korean expansion involves creating overseas distribution channels for Korean won stablecoins if such assets are issued under the country's developing regulatory framework. According to MoonPay, the company expects its global network to provide Korean won stablecoins access to users outside the country, including overseas Koreans, international students, and tourists. Under the proposed model, users could buy and hold won stablecoins abroad, convert them into other currencies or digital assets, and use them for payments and settlements. MoonPay co-founder and Asia Pacific CEO Lee Boo Gun identified overseas remittances, payments by foreigners in Korea, trade transactions, and corporate payments as potential uses for won stablecoins. The company is particularly focused on cross-border fund flows, including overseas remittances by international students, domestic payments by foreigners in South Korea, overseas payments by companies and the global distribution of Korean digital assets.
As reported by MoonPay, the company is implementing its 'Full Stack Last Mile' strategy, which involves connecting services directly with existing Korean financial infrastructure rather than limiting its role to providing APIs and software development kits. The system covers final transaction stages including won deposits and withdrawals, payments, settlements, merchant settlement, refunds, and error processing. MoonPay plans to pursue licenses needed for Korean operations, including virtual asset service provider registration, and will adapt systems to local security and operating standards. The company noted that its plans are being prepared before South Korea completes its second stage digital asset legislation, with the Digital Asset Framework Act review expected to reach a National Assembly bill review subcommittee in November. MoonPay plans to expand its services in phases after meeting requirements for each business line, including virtual asset service provider reporting and the necessary licenses and registrations.
According to previous reports from crypto.news, KB Financial has already tested won stablecoin payments in May, covering issuance, offline QR payments, merchant settlement, and overseas remittance to Vietnam. The Vietnam test converted a won stablecoin into a dollar stablecoin through onchain liquidity before transferring funds to a Vietnamese bank account, completing the transaction in less than three minutes with fees roughly 87% lower than conventional SWIFT-based transfers. KB Kookmin Bank will examine on and off ramp infrastructure, wallets, stablecoin issuance and distribution, and overseas remittance services with MoonPay. KakaoBank is working on a cross border remittance structure designed to connect Korean remittance applications with overseas bank accounts in one transaction flow, with the company aiming to process transactions within an hour.
According to MoonPay, the company has processed more than $45 billion in cumulative volume and serves more than 32 million verified users. Over the past 12 months, it has had more than 1,500 onboarding and transaction partners. Its services currently include on-and off-ramps for crypto purchases and cash-outs, stablecoin conversion, global payouts, issuance and redemption, and merchant payment and settlement. In South Korea, the company plans to focus on building the 'last mile' that connects global infrastructure with real-world financial services. It aims to work with local financial institutions and platforms to establish know-your-customer procedures, fund flows, payment and settlement, and customer protection systems, while localizing won deposits and withdrawals and domestic payment methods. At the Seoul event, MoonPay Chief Legal Officer Caroline Pham described the company as an 'operating system of value' covering funding, tokenization, trading, and spending through services including on and off ramps, virtual accounts, white label stablecoin issuance, wallets, cross chain transactions, and settlement.
