SBI Digital Practice and South Korean technology company Nodeinfra have announced plans to jointly develop a cross-border payment and settlement network between Japan and South Korea.
The initiative, known as the Musubi Project, will be designed as a member-owned network built on Canton. It is intended to support stablecoin payments and give participating members a role in how the network is governed.
Planned features include payment-versus-payment settlement, distributed peer netting and member-led governance.
The first stage will test the direct exchange of a yen-denominated test token and a won-denominated test token. Both sides of the payment will be settled at the same time.
According to the announcement, payments between Japan and South Korea often involve separate settlement steps through the US dollar. The Musubi Project will test a more direct settlement process between the two currencies.
The initial trial will use test tokens rather than regulated stablecoins. The companies plan to consider regulated yen and won stablecoins as the legal and regulatory frameworks in both countries develop.
SBI Digital Practice will work on connecting the network with existing financial systems. It will also use the wider SBI Group network to support the participation of Japanese financial institutions.
Nodeinfra will lead the development of the settlement protocol, smart contracts and developer tools. The company will also support the participation of Korean financial institutions and custodians, along with work related to South Korea’s regulatory requirements.
Nodeinfra has experience developing Daml smart contracts and operating validator infrastructure on Canton. SBI Digital Practice was established within the SBI Group to focus on business connected to Canton.
The companies plan to begin with the Japan-South Korea payment corridor before considering additional currencies, markets and asset classes. Their engineering teams will also work together through technical exchanges and joint development
