South Korea Expands CBDC Pilot To Nine Participating Banks

South Korea's Financial Services Commission said the second phase of its central bank digital currency pilot, known as the Han River Project, has begun. Gyeongnam Bank and iM Bank have officially joined the program, bringing the number of participating banks to nine. According to Odaily, the second phase will expand the user base and use cases for deposit tokens. The maximum number of electronic wallets will rise from 100,000 to 500,000, while the usage scope will expand from existing merchants to small and medium-sized merchants and large enterprises. The test will also add wallet-to-wallet transfers and a trial for treasury fund payments. In addition, the maximum holdings per wallet will increase from 1 million won to 10 million won, and the cumulative holding limit will rise from 5 million won to 100 million won.