7-Eleven stores in South Korea have started accepting the central bank digital currency (CBDC) issued by the Bank of Korea as part of a trial running until June.
This initiative is linked to the “Hangang Project” pilot program for the CBDC. Patrons with accounts at selected partner banks, including Kookmin, Shinhan, and Woori, can make purchases by scanning a QR code from their digital wallet, much like those using various mobile payment apps, as reported by a local news source.
To incentivize involvement, 7-Eleven is providing a 10% discount on all items bought with the digital currency during the testing phase.
Moon Dae-woo, the digital innovation leader at 7-Eleven, mentioned that the retailer aims to leverage new technologies to enhance operational efficiency.
“By engaging in this digital currency payment experiment, we’re progressing further in our digital transformation efforts,” he remarked in a statement.
This pilot represents one of the initial real-world implementations of a central bank digital currency within a retail environment in South Korea, following the central bank governor’s comments about the pressing need for a CBDC implementation.
Disclaimer: The information for this article was translated using artificial intelligence.