Pay by QR, Settle in Stablecoins Behind the Scenes: SBI Digital Trust's Japan-Korea Pilot Targets "Invisible Cross-Border Payments"

What was announced

SBI Digital Trust, a subsidiary of SBI Holdings, announced the joint verification with NICE Information & Telecommunication and DSRV on October 1. The three companies signed a memorandum of understanding on September 30 at NICE's headquarters in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. They aim to complete the verification by the end of December 2026.

The target use case is a Japanese traveler in Korea paying by QR code at a NICE merchant. The partners will specify how funds move from user to merchant, how transfer and payment instructions work and how each company's systems connect, while also examining expected transaction volumes and costs.

Division of roles

SBI Digital Trust will develop and refine the payment scheme with other SBI Group companies, drawing on its knowledge of Japanese regulation, payment systems and digital assets. NICE, which supports about 1.2 million merchants across Korea, will examine merchant payment operations, integration with existing systems and business viability. DSRV will handle blockchain technical requirements and system architecture. The stablecoin and underlying chain have not been disclosed.

Being able to send money is not enough to commercialize

The pilot focuses less on whether funds can technically be transferred and more on business viability: integration with existing financial and payment systems, real-store operations, transaction volumes and costs. According to SBI Digital Trust, Korea's stablecoin framework is still developing and under debate. Identifying operational issues before rules are finalized also strengthens the partners' ability to inform policy.

Context: a Japan-Korea payment corridor

In August, SBI Digital Practice and Korea's Nodeinfra also agreed to develop a cross-border settlement network linking Japan and Korea on Canton, starting with yen and won test tokens before introducing regulated stablecoins. In the same week as this announcement, PayPay began accepting crypto payments from inbound visitors. On-chain settlement networks using traveler payments as the entry point are being built in parallel between Japan and Korea.

Implications for Japan

For users, paying in Korea is just a QR scan, and the stablecoin is invisible. "Invisible cross-border payments" that raise settlement efficiency between businesses without making consumers aware of crypto can be applied to both inbound and outbound flows from Japan.

[Business Development Insights]

1. Stablecoins in cross-border payments will be implemented first in B2B layers such as merchant settlement rather than consumer-facing products. Payment service providers and acquirers should begin comparing settlement costs and speed.
2. Pilots run before regulations are finalized give participants operational data that strengthens their voice with regulators. Japanese companies gain the most from early participation in overseas markets still building their frameworks.
3. With heavy traveler traffic and high QR payment penetration, Japan-Korea could become the first commercial corridor for stablecoin settlement. Tourism, retail and transport operators should revisit their bilateral payment strategies.

[Sources]

• NADA NEWS: https://www.nadanews.com/370441/
• CoinPost: https://coinpost.jp/?p=740531
• DX Magazine: https://dxmagazine.jp/news/ytoda2640-28/
• JinaCoin (via wacoca): https://www.wacoca.com/news/2945897/
• DigitalToday: https://www.digitaltoday.co.kr/en/view/109620/
• crypto.news: https://crypto.news/lloyds-uses-usdc-to-settle-750000-with-visa-in-under-an-hour/