Digital Currency and Blockchain Bonds in Spotlight
Cryptocurrency News
6 min read time
|Updated: 2026-09-22
As of September 22, the crypto market has
Bitcoin price trading at around $85,700, Ethereum near $2,740 and XRP around $1.52, while digital payment infrastructure and blockchain-based financial systems are among the day’s main developments. Saudi Arabia has ended its participation in the mBridge cross-border CBDC project, South Korea’s Hana Bank has issued a $100 million digital bond through Euroclear’s blockchain infrastructure, and Kakao Pay and KakaoBank have signed a memorandum of understanding with Fireblocks to explore digital asset infrastructure, including stablecoins.
Market Perspective: Different Models of Digital Financial Infrastructure Move Into Focus
Today’s three developments show that
blockchain based finance is not developing through a single model. mBridge focuses on allowing central banks to transfer their own digital currencies through shared infrastructure, while Hana Bank is using distributed-ledger technology in the issuance and settlement of a traditional bond. Kakao Pay and KakaoBank, meanwhile, remain at the exploratory stage as they assess infrastructure for stablecoins and other digital asset services.
The current stage of each development needs to be distinguished carefully. Saudi Arabia’s departure from mBridge does not mean the country has abandoned CBDC research in general. Hana Bank’s bond is not a cryptocurrency, but a traditional debt instrument issued through blockchain-based infrastructure. Kakao has also not launched a stablecoin or announced an implementation date.
CBDCs, tokenized financial products and stablecoin infrastructure may therefore use related technologies, but they represent separate financial models with different regulatory and operational structures.
Saudi Arabia Ends Participation in the mBridge CBDC Project
The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) has ended its participation in
mBridge, a project designed for cross-border central bank digital currency transactions. SAMA joined as an observer in 2023, became a full participant in June 2024 and completed its proof of concept on May 13, 2025. The central bank said the conclusion of its participation had been planned from the beginning.
mBridge was established in 2021 through collaboration involving the BIS Innovation Hub and the central banks of China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. The infrastructure is designed to allow different central bank digital currencies to be used for cross-border payments and foreign-exchange transactions on a shared distributed ledger.
An important distinction is the difference between CBDCs and stablecoins. Rather than relying on a single privately issued
stablecoin, mBridge enables participating central banks to transact using their own digital currencies on shared infrastructure.
The BIS ended its active role in October 2024 after the project reached its minimum viable product stage and transferred further development to participating central banks. mBridge continues to operate with other participants following Saudi Arabia’s departure.
It would therefore be inaccurate to describe the development as Saudi Arabia abandoning CBDCs. The available information shows that SAMA concluded its involvement in a specific multilateral project after completing a previously planned proof-of-concept phase.
Hana Bank Issues $100 Million Digital Bond Through Euroclear
South Korea’s Hana Bank has issued a five-year
$100 million digital bond using Euroclear’s blockchain-based
Digital Financial Market Infrastructure (D-FMI). The bond’s issuance, registration and settlement were processed through distributed-ledger infrastructure.
According to reports, the blockchain-based process allowed bond allocation and payment settlement to be completed on the same day. Certain stages that can traditionally require three to five business days were therefore completed on the issuance date.
The bond also remains connected to Euroclear’s existing global settlement network. This allows investors to access the security through existing Euroclear accounts and systems rather than moving entirely to a separate
blockchain marketplace. The transaction therefore represents an example of distributed-ledger technology being integrated into existing financial infrastructure rather than operating independently from it.
It would be inaccurate to describe the transaction as Hana Bank issuing $100 million in cryptocurrency. The product is a traditional dollar-denominated bond, with blockchain technology used for its issuance, recordkeeping and settlement infrastructure.
The transaction also illustrates how tokenization and distributed-ledger systems can be applied beyond crypto assets to traditional capital-market instruments such as bonds.
Kakao Pay and KakaoBank to Explore Stablecoin Infrastructure
South Korean financial companies Kakao Pay and KakaoBank have signed a
memorandum of understanding with Fireblocks to explore digital asset opportunities, including stablecoins. Under the agreement, the companies will conduct proof-of-concept tests for digital asset infrastructure suited to South Korea’s regulatory, security and service requirements.
The initiative is intended to assess how secure onchain financial infrastructure could be developed for South Korea’s emerging digital asset market. According to Fireblocks, the collaboration is not limited to stablecoins and covers broader digital asset infrastructure.
However, the agreement does not represent a product launch. The companies have not announced a new stablecoin, an investment amount or a commercial implementation timeline. The TradingView report also notes that no launch or implementation date was disclosed.
The development therefore should not be described as Kakao launching a stablecoin. At this stage, the two financial companies are working together to assess the technical and regulatory feasibility of infrastructure for stablecoins and other digital assets.
CoinTR Insight
Today’s three developments show how digital financial infrastructure is evolving across central bank money, traditional bonds and stablecoin-based systems. mBridge is testing the cross-border use of CBDCs, Hana Bank demonstrates how blockchain technology can be integrated into existing capital-market infrastructure, and the Kakao Pay and KakaoBank initiative highlights continued technical exploration of stablecoin infrastructure within banking and payments.
When assessing these developments, pilot projects need to be distinguished from commercial products, traditional securities recorded on blockchain from native crypto assets, and stablecoin research from active stablecoin issuance.
While CoinTR’s
USDT/TRY
pair provides a way to follow market activity between the Turkish lira and USDT, the structure of the platform used for digital asset transactions remains another area to consider. When assessing a
reliable crypto exchange, regulatory compliance, security infrastructure, liquidity, transparency and processes designed to protect user assets should be considered together.
Forward-Looking Takeaway
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The next stage of mBridge: Saudi Arabia has concluded its participation after completing its proof of concept, while mBridge continues with other participants. The platform’s future scale and participant structure will determine the next stage of the project.
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Expansion of digital bond issuance: Hana Bank’s $100 million transaction demonstrated same-day settlement for a digital bond. Additional issuances and broader use of Euroclear’s infrastructure will provide more information about the scale of tokenization in institutional capital markets.
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Kakao’s stablecoin exploration: The collaboration remains at the MoU and proof-of-concept stage. Technical testing, South Korea’s regulatory framework and any future commercial announcements will determine the next phase.
2026-09-22Legal Notice
The information, comments, and evaluations contained in this content do not constitute investment advice. This content is not intended to be prescriptive in any way and is intended to provide general information. It does not constitute investment advice. CoinTR cannot be held responsible for any transactions made based on this information or any losses that may arise.
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