South Korea officially commenced a pilot operation for its 24-hour won international settlement network today, September 21, 2026. This initiative by the Bank of Korea aims to enhance the convenience of won settlements for foreign investors, allowing them to conduct transactions around the clock without needing to open separate accounts with Korean financial institutions. The full operation of this "Bank of Korea KRW International Transfer Network" is slated for January 2027.
During the pilot phase, four major domestic banks — Kookmin Bank, Woori Bank, Hana Bank, and Shinhan Bank — are participating. The system is designed to operate 24 hours a day on business days, excluding weekends and public holidays. This new framework enables foreign financial institutions, through an additional "Registered Foreign Institutions for KRW Business (RFI-K)" license, to open omnibus accounts with domestic banks and settle won transactions directly via the Bank of Korea's network. This allows non-resident foreign customers to manage won deposits and conduct remittances, investments, and securities lending and borrowing in their own time zones.
The move is a significant step in South Korea's broader strategy to internationalize the won, as outlined in July 2026. Previously, foreign customers faced hurdles due to the requirement of opening accounts with Korean foreign exchange banks. This new system addresses such limitations and is expected to improve the accessibility of the won settlement infrastructure for overseas investors. The central bank anticipates that this will also bolster South Korea's bid for inclusion in the MSCI developed markets index, as the won's limited offshore convertibility has been a long-standing concern for the index provider. Earlier in July, won-dollar trading hours were also extended to 24 hours.
