Danal partners with Japan's UPC to expand Korea-Japan cross-border payment services

Danal and Japan’s payment company UPC (a subsidiary of UNIVA Group’s Univa Paycast) join forces to jointly expand the Korea-Japan “cross-border payment” market. Their strategy not only involves payment infrastructure but also considers a stablecoin-based model to broaden business scope.

Expanding Korea-Japan payment infrastructure… Comprehensive cooperation in tourism and e-commerce

Danal announced on April 23rd that it has established a strategic partnership with UPC to improve the payment and settlement structure between the two countries. This cooperation is a further deepening of the relationship after the initial partnership in 2023, focusing on enhancing payment and top-up convenience in tourism, education, and e-commerce sectors. It also includes structural improvements to reduce costs and time in trade remittances and settlements within Japan.

UPC is a service provider offering QR payments, electronic money, card payments, and overseas convenient payments both online and offline across Japan. It has built a network of affiliated stores linked with major payment methods such as PayPay, Rakuten Pay, and Suica, which is regarded as an advantage in local connectivity.

Leading with ‘K.ONDA’ Aiming at Foreign Visitors to Korea

The first cooperation model between the two parties is the foreign prepaid card “K.ONDA.” Danal plans to leverage UPC’s Japanese network to enable local issuance and recharge of the card, improving payment access for tourists visiting Korea. The idea is to enhance the efficiency of the entire process of top-up, payment, and settlement, reducing inconveniences during cross-border transactions.

This model aligns with the recovery of tourism demand, with the significance of quickly obtaining payment data based on actual usage. Industry experts see this as “more than just payment linkage, an attempt to capture actual usage environments.”

And even Japanese Yen stablecoins… Launching payment business expansion

In the medium to long term, there are plans to explore “Yen-based stablecoin” payment and circulation models. Danal has accumulated digital asset payment capabilities based on empirical experience with Korean Won and USDC, and its strategy is to extend this to the Japanese market.

In the past, Danal shifted its focus overseas after payment services were restricted due to issues with domestic virtual asset operators. Japan is considered suitable as a testing ground due to its relatively clear regulatory system and advanced digital payment infrastructure.

Ultimately, this cooperation can be interpreted not only as an improvement in payment convenience but also as an experimental new payment ecosystem combining “cross-border payments” and stablecoins. Whether the infrastructure connecting Korea and Japan can translate into tangible results will be a key focus in the future.

TP AI Notice: This article uses a language model based on TokenPost.ai to generate summaries. The main content may be omitted or inconsistent with facts.