The Bank of Korea has reportedly finalized the initial stage of its central bank digital currency (CBDC) mock testing, which began in August last year. 

Specifically, The South Korean central bank reportedly revealed that the initial stage of its CBDC mock testing was finalized in December, with the process for the next stage already ongoing. 

The initial stage of the mock test reportedly comes with a variety of the basic features of the sovereign digital currency, nominally distribution and issuance.

The second stage of the CBDC pilot would conduct testing of different real-world features, nominally cross-border remittance, retail payments, and offline payments. 

“We will confirm the possibility of operating various functions, such as offline settlements, and the application of new technologies, such as one intended to strengthen privacy protection during the second phase of the test.” The bank reportedly remarked. 

Bank of Korea (BOK) is reportedly also having goals to onboard financial institutions for the second phase, bearing some similarities to the ongoing project from China with its digital yuan. 

However, unlike China, BOK-issued digital currency would also concentrate on user privacy.

The timeline for completion of the second phase is expected to be June this year, after which the central bank has plans down its pipeline to outline an official introduction and commercialization plans. 

South Korea has reportedly then become a member of the select group of countries, which have either begun or finalized the pilot stage of their CBDC testing. 

At the moment, 91 countries are investing resources in their sovereign digital currency and only 14 countries have achieved the pilot phase, as revealed by insights from the Atlantic Council.