Beyond central bank initiatives, South Korea is preparing to trial blockchain-based payments for government spending. The Ministry of Economy and Finance plans to use tokenized deposits in a sandbox program starting in Sejong City, with a broader rollout expected later in 2026. This move reflects growing interest in applying distributed ledger technology to real-world public finance use cases.

At the same time, the country remains divided over stablecoin regulation. Lawmakers and regulators are still debating whether issuance should be restricted to banks or opened to fintech firms. Shin has previously expressed skepticism about stablecoins, arguing they lack the “unity” of traditional money due to fragmentation across blockchains—highlighting the challenges policymakers face as they balance innovation with financial stability.