Coinbase Partners With BC Card to Pilot a USDC-Based Payment Solution in Korea

The pilot will evaluate a solution linking a domestic QR payment platform to USDC on the Coinbase-incubated Base platform. BC Card stated that a medium to long-term partnership would follow this demonstration to build a compliant Korean won settlement process for merchants.

Coinbase Partners With BC Card To Run USDC Payment Pilot in Korea

BC Card, one of the largest payment processors in Korea, has partnered with Coinbase to pilot a hybrid crypto-to-fiat payments solution in the country.

According to local media, the two companies signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to organize a pilot platform linking BC Card’s signature QR payment process with wallets in the Base ecosystem, which was incubated by Coinbase in 2023.

The goal is that customers with USDC, a dollar-based stablecoin, can leverage these tokens on the Base network directly to complete domestic payments seamlessly, with merchants receiving Korean won in compliance with local laws.

After this proof of concept, the partnership could expand to upgrade the current USDC domestic payment settlement model and revitalize the Base ecosystem in Korea.

David Hyuckjae Park, Base’s Regional Lead for East Asia, stated that this represents “an early step in exploring how stablecoins can improve payment efficiency and global interoperability.”

Choi Won-seok, President of BC Card, stated that this partnership would expand to “build a USDC payment ecosystem optimized for the domestic environment by combining the synergy between the two companies’ infrastructures,” using BC Card’s payments IP.

BC Card has over 36 million customers in the domestic market and over 3.5 million internationally. The initiative seeks to introduce global stablecoin payments to these users in a convenient way.

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FAQ

• What is the goal of BC Card’s partnership with Coinbase?
  The partnership aims to pilot a hybrid crypto-to-fiat payments solution in South Korea using USDC.
• How will the payment process work for customers?
  Users with USDC can make domestic payments via the Base network, with merchants receiving payment in Korean won.
• What could this partnership lead to in the future?
  The collaboration may upgrade the USDC domestic payment settlement model and enhance the Base ecosystem in Korea.
• How many customers does BC Card serve?
  BC Card serves over 36 million customers domestically and 3.5 million internationally, aiming to simplify access to stablecoin payments.