Woori Card applies for multiple stablecoin trademarks, and South Korea's five major financial holding companies accelerate the layout of crypto payments

According to the latest information from the Korean Intellectual Property Office, Woori Card submitted several trademark applications related to stablecoins on July 10, 2025, including "WCKRW", "WCWON" and "WONWC". This is the third Korean credit card company to officially enter the stablecoin track after Shinhan Card and Korea National Card.

In this trademark application, Woori Card clearly specified product categories including downloadable software for stablecoins, indicating that it not only focuses on the concept of digital currency, but also intends to establish independent capabilities at the technical infrastructure level to lay the foundation for the future transformation of payment systems.

Credit card giants collectively bet on stablecoins

As blockchain technology gradually merges with traditional payment systems, the Korean credit card industry is showing a trend of paying close attention to stablecoins. As one of the five major financial holding groups in South Korea, Woori Financial Group, its subsidiary Woori Bank, submitted several stablecoin trademark applications as early as July 7, showing the strategic importance of the group to this emerging field.

Through the dual-path layout of credit cards and banks, Woori Group is building an integrated solution of "bank-card organization-stablecoin application ecology", which may realize on-chain applications in multiple scenarios including online payment, cross-border settlement, and points redemption in the future.

Stablecoins have become a new high ground for competition among financial groups

In recent years, Korean regulators have begun to explore innovative payment models including KRW-backed stablecoins to improve the efficiency and transparency of the financial system. Stablecoins are also seen as an important bridge between traditional finance and the Web3 world.

With Shinhan Financial Group, KB Financial Group and Woori Financial Group taking action one after another, more than half of the five major financial groups in South Korea have clearly launched stablecoin trademark layout and technology research and development, indicating that the country may take the lead in building a regulated stablecoin financial system in Asia.