SBI Holdings and KB Kookmin Card partner on AI and stablecoin payments

SBI Holdings and KB Kookmin Card have entered into a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on cross-border financial and payment services between Japan and South Korea. The partnership involves four companies, including SBI EVERSPIN and Everspin, focusing on the integration of AI agents and digital assets.

A central component of the collaboration is the development and testing of the ‘KYA Trust Gateway’. This platform utilizes ‘Know Your Agent’ (KYA) principles to verify the identity and authority of AI agents through digital credentials. The goal is to ensure secure connections between AI agents operated by different entities and various financial services.

The companies plan to conduct phased demonstrations, eventually expanding to allow Japanese travelers to use stablecoins and other digital assets for payments at merchants in South Korea. This includes testing integration with mobile payment services like ‘KB Pay’ and verifying operational functions such as transaction cancellation, refunds, and fraud detection.

This initiative follows previous efforts by SBI DigiTrust to test stablecoin-based QR code payments for Japanese tourists in South Korea, a project involving NICE Information & Telecommunication and DSRV.