South Korea’s central bank is going forward with National digital currency plans.

Central Bank of South Korea is seeking a tech partner to build its digital currency. South Korea’s state digital currency pilot is scheduled to run from August to December of 2021. Therefore, the Central Bank of Korea is looking for a technology supplier. The tech supplier has to design a pilot platform for the digital won.

Bidding Process

According to a Reuters report, the bank announced that it launched a bidding process to choose the tech partner to study the practicalities of launching a central bank digital currency in a test environment.

The Central Bank of Korea said that the latest move comes in response to the fast changes in the global financial system. The bank also stated that the share of cash transactions is also decreasing significantly. Therefore, the steps they are taking now are to prepare for the changes in the payment settlement system changing rapidly.

According to the report, the Central Bank of Korea pilot CBDC platform will contain commercial banks and retail outlets simulations. Moreover, they test payments through mobile phones, fund transfers, and deposits.

However, the pilot program is scheduled to run from August to December 2021. Moreover, there are chances for the Pilot program to be extended into next year. The Central Bank of Korea also published a CBDC related book in February.

Test Plans

The bank announced its plans to test the digital distribution and outlined the legal challenges of a state digital currency in the book. Shinhan Bank, a major South Korean commercial bank, developed the blockchain-based pilot platform in March.

It has partnered with LG corporation’s IT services arm, LG CNS, for this program. In addition, the bank reportedly said that it was willing to collaborate with the BOK on developing a national digital currency.