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South Korea Picks Danal to Build Deposit Token Payments for CBDC Pilot
Danal joins nine banks and eight payment gateways in a consortium tied to the Bank of Korea's Project Hangang CBDC pilot, targeting lower merchant fees.
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South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) have picked payments firm Danal for the 2026 "Blockchain Innovation Leading Project." The specific track: "Deposit Token-Based Payment Infrastructure Expansion."
Danal said Monday it will join a private-sector consortium led by the Korea Financial Telecommunications & Clearings Institute (KFTC). Nine commercial banks, eight payment gateway providers, and two large-scale merchants are also in the group.
The project connects directly to the Bank of Korea's central bank digital currency pilot, called Project Hangang. The idea is to extend deposit token payments–tokenized commercial bank deposits that sit inside the existing banking system–into real commerce. Policymakers see deposit tokens as a middle path: blockchain-style programmability and settlement speed, without moving funds outside regulated bank accounts.
A stated policy goal is cutting fee burdens for small merchants. Interchange and processing costs squeeze micro-merchants in many retail markets. The consortium plans to test whether tokenized settlement rails can lower those costs without forcing stores to swap out their point-of-sale hardware.