As stablecoin payments spread as a settlement method among global corporations, the French national bank has invested in related infrastructure startups. The European Union (EU), which has prepared a standalone virtual asset bill, is accelerating ecosystem development by investing funds. There are suggestions that Korea should also promptly organize its system in line with global trends.
According to the industry on the 19th, the French Public Investment Bank (Bpifrance) led a strategic investment in Request Finance, a web3-based financial management platform, in March. European venture capitals such as Balderton Capital and XAnge also participated in this round. The bank established a digital asset investment-dedicated fund of up to 25 million euros (approximately 39.134 billion won) in the same month and began nurturing blockchain startups.
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Request Finance is a French startup established in 2020. It operates an enterprise accounting, payment, and billing platform based on stablecoins and other virtual assets. Its main customers are blockchain-based startups and global companies paying fees to overseas freelancers. It automates the entire process from email invoice issuance to batch payment of multi-wallet salaries, expense settlement, and accounting record generation.
After the implementation of the EU's standalone virtual asset regulation MiCA, the adoption of stablecoins in institutional payment areas is rapidly spreading. According to Request Finance, the cumulative payment processing amount exceeded $1 billion as of March. The number of processed transactions in April was 6,940, recording an all-time high. The amount of virtual assets paid during this period was $31.3 million.
In terms of currency composition, stablecoins linked to the US dollar are leading the payment market. USDC accounted for 37%, while Tether (USDT) represented 29%. For three consecutive months, USDC has recorded first place in terms of transaction count, showing superiority in inter-corporate payments. This is due to Circle, the USDC issuer, acquiring the first stablecoin issuance qualification in Europe according to MiCA last year.
With the implementation of MiCA ensuring regulatory clarity, various companies are entering Europe. In addition to Circle, the domestic virtual asset startup Wavebridge is establishing a corporation in Lithuania and preparing to acquire a MiCA-based license.
In contrast, Korea lacks regulations and even institutional foundations related to stablecoins. While the EU is actively investing after organizing its legal system, Korea has not even established an ecosystem foundation, raising concerns that the market gap may further widen. An industry official said, "The current domestic virtual asset ecosystem is tilted towards a few large exchanges" and "It is urgent to enact a digital asset basic law so that businesses of various types can grow".
- Reporter Do Ye-ri
- yeri.do@sedaily.com
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