South Korea’s central bank has begun testing a new around-the-clock settlement system designed to make the won easier for overseas investors to use. The Bank of Korea started the trial of its international won wire network on Monday morning, working with four major domestic lenders: KB Kookmin Bank, Woori Bank, Hana Bank and Shinhan Bank.
The platform, known as the Bank of Korea Won International Wire Network, is meant to close a practical gap that has long complicated foreign participation in Korean markets.
Until now, settling won transactions often required accounts at Korean banks and had to wait for Seoul business hours.
Under the pilot, overseas investors can instead complete won payments through accounts held at Registered Foreign Institutions for KRW Business, or RFI-Ks, in their own countries.
They can deal with other foreign participants without first opening a Korean bank account.
The network runs from 9 a.m. on a business day until 9 a.m. the next day.
It does not operate on weekends or public holidays.
Officials say the arrangement lets investors settle during their local working hours rather than aligning everything with the Korean clock.
Full commercial launch is planned for January, when foreign banks are expected to join.
The central bank described the project as its first settlement network built to run continuously on business days.
It said the change should give foreign investors better access to won payment infrastructure and, over time, help raise the currency’s international profile.
The move sits inside a broader government effort to ease long-standing foreign-exchange restrictions, expand offshore use of the won, and improve market accessibility as Seoul seeks developed-market recognition from index providers.
Early reports indicated that participating Korean banks completed an initial test transfer of about 1.4 billion won shortly after the system went live.
Authorities have said they will monitor operations closely, refine rules and systems as needed, and gradually widen the group of participating institutions.
The pilot follows other recent steps to keep Korean markets open longer, including extended foreign-exchange trading hours.
Together, these changes aim to reduce the need for overnight hedging and next-day workarounds that previously added cost and friction for global funds buying Korean stocks and bonds.
Officials caution that the trial is just the first phase.
Stability, liquidity, and risk controls will be watched carefully before the network is opened more widely. If it works as intended, foreign investors should find it simpler to hold, transfer, and settle won abroad, bringing the currency closer to the kind of continuous usability expected in major financial centers.