Project Musubi: A New Cross-Border Payment Corridor
SBI Digital Practice and South Korea’s Nodeinfra have agreed to jointly develop a cross-border payment and settlement network between Japan and South Korea using Canton Network infrastructure. The companies announced the memorandum of understanding on Aug. 7, calling the initiative Project Musubi.
The first phase will use yen-denominated and won-denominated test tokens rather than live commercial stablecoins, according to SBI’s announcement. The project is designed to address the current use of the U.S. dollar as an intermediary in some Japan-Korea settlements. SBI said sequential settlement through a dollar vehicle can create additional friction and settlement risk. Project Musubi instead plans to settle both sides of a currency exchange simultaneously on Canton.
How the Testing Phase Will Work
The initial testing phase will use a yen test token and a won test token. SBI and Nodeinfra said they intend to move toward regulated stablecoins when the legal frameworks in each market allow it. The companies did not provide a commercial launch date or name participating banks, exchanges or payment firms.
That distinction matters because Project Musubi is still being developed rather than operating as a live stablecoin payment service. Its planned architecture includes atomic payment-versus-payment settlement, distributed peer netting and member self-governance. Atomic settlement is intended to make both sides of a transaction complete together, reducing the risk that one party delivers funds while the other side fails.
Roles in the Canton Network Build
SBI Digital Practice will build integration layers connecting existing financial systems to the network and use SBI Group relationships to support onboarding in Japan. Nodeinfra will develop the core settlement protocol, Daml smart contracts and developer tools while supporting Korean financial institutions and custodians.
SBI’s Yen Token Infrastructure Is Further Along
SBI’s Japanese infrastructure is further along. The group said it launched JPYSC through SBI Shinsei Trust Bank in June, describing it as Japan’s first trust-type yen stablecoin. As previously reported, SBI moved on June 24, with SBI VC Trade handling primary distribution.
The Musubi announcement does not say JPYSC will be used during the initial test phase. Ryo Shimotsu, representative director of SBI Digital Practice, said the group intends to connect Musubi with SBI’s wider onchain infrastructure. His statement that the companies aim to “set a new standard” for Japan-Korea payment infrastructure describes their objective, not an achieved outcome.
SBI Digital Practice itself is new. SBI renamed SBI Security Solutions in June and shifted its focus toward institutional onchain finance. As previously reported, the group expanded its focus to include infrastructure spanning countries and currencies.
South Korea’s Regulatory Timetable Is a Key Dependency
The Korean side has a different regulatory timetable. South Korea is developing legislation for won-denominated digital assets under a broader Digital Asset Basic Act. As previously reported, policymakers are still working through the legislation, but key provisions remain under negotiation.
That helps explain why Project Musubi begins with test tokens. SBI’s announcement says regulated stablecoins would be adopted as the respective Japanese and Korean frameworks allow. It does not identify a won stablecoin issuer or provide a date for moving from testing into production.
What Happens Next for SBI and Nodeinfra
The immediate work centers on technical development and institutional onboarding. SBI Digital Practice will focus on connecting Japanese financial infrastructure, while Nodeinfra will lead protocol and smart contract development and help onboard Korean institutions.
The partners eventually plan to expand Project Musubi beyond the Japan-Korea corridor into additional currencies, jurisdictions and asset classes. That expansion remains a stated plan rather than a confirmed rollout. The next concrete milestones will be completion of testing, participation by regulated institutions and sufficient regulatory clarity to introduce commercial stablecoins.
