최초입력 2025.05.23 10:53:14
Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong on has urged local lenders to actively participate in the central bank digital currency (CBDC) initiative.
According to the Bank of Korea on Thursday, Rhee recently held separate meetings with the heads of six banks KB Kookmin Bank, Shinhan Bank, Hana Bank, Woori Bank, NH NongHyup Bank, and Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK).
Rhee met with Woori Bank Chief Executive Officer Jung Jin-wan and NongHyup Bank CEO Kang Tae-young earlier in the day after meeting with Shinhan Bank CEO Jung Sang-hyuk the previous day.
It is unusual for the BOK governor to communicate with bank CEOs in such a one-on-one manner.
CBDCs are digital currencies issued and circulated by central banks.
They hold the same value as existing legal tender, although their form is digital rather than paper or coin.
According to sources from the financial sector, Rhee asked the banks to actively participate in the Project Agora, which will begin testing in the second half of this year.
Project Agora aims to improve cross-border payment and settlement systems by using wholesale CBDCs and deposit tokens, or digitized forms of bank deposits.
The project is being jointly led by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and the Institute of International Finance (IIF), with participation from five major reserve currency nations - the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, France, and Switzerland - as well as Korea and Mexico.
Rhee also asked the banks to take interest in Project Han River, a separate initiative led by the BOK.
[ⓒ 매일경제 & mk.co.kr, 무단 전재, 재배포 및 AI학습 이용 금지]