European and Korean Banking Groups Launch Project Pangea to Explore Real-Time Stablecoin FX Settlement

A coalition of European and South Korean banking institutions has launched Project Pangea, a cross-border initiative aimed at testing how regulated stablecoins could modernize foreign exchange (FX) settlement and reduce reliance on traditional correspondent banking infrastructure.

Announced at Point Zero Forum 2026 in Zurich, the initiative brings together Chainlink, South Korean blockchain infrastructure provider FairSquareLab, the Unified Korea Alliance (UniKA), and Qivalis, a European euro stablecoin consortium backed by 37 banks. Collectively, participating institutions represent more than $10 trillion in assets under management and include more than 10 Korean commercial banks.

The working group will evaluate whether cross-border foreign exchange transactions can move from the current T+2 settlement model toward near-instant T+0 settlement using regulated euro- and won-denominated stablecoins. The project focuses on enabling direct Payment-versus-Payment (PvP) transactions, where both sides of a currency exchange settle simultaneously, reducing settlement risk and improving capital efficiency.

Stablecoins Target FX Market Inefficiencies

According to the project participants, the global foreign exchange market processes more than $9.6 trillion in daily trading volume, yet cross-border settlements continue to depend on fragmented infrastructure, intermediary currencies, and delayed settlement cycles. Project Pangea seeks to address these frictions by enabling direct exchanges between regulated euro and Korean won stablecoins.

The initiative plans to leverage existing banking infrastructure rather than replace it. Swift's ISO 20022 messaging standards will remain the communication layer for participating banks, while blockchain-based settlement infrastructure will execute the final exchange of digital assets.

Qivalis Brings European Banking Support

Qivalis, one of the project's key participants, has emerged as one of Europe's most significant bank-led stablecoin initiatives. As previously reported by Unlock Blockchain, the consortium recently expanded to 37 member banks as it advances plans for a MiCA-compliant euro-denominated stablecoin, positioning itself as a potential foundation for institutional digital payments and settlement across Europe.

Project Pangea could provide one of the first practical use cases connecting regulated euro stablecoins issued by European financial institutions with emerging stablecoin infrastructure in Asia, creating a new framework for cross-border currency exchange.

Three-Layer Architecture

Project Pangea is structured around three layers:

• A banking layer based on Swift and ISO 20022 messaging;

• A connectivity layer powered by Chainlink's interoperability and market data services;

• A settlement layer utilizing smart contracts deployed across blockchain networks including Ethereum, Polygon, and FairSquareLab's dedicated Pangea Layer-1 network.

Chainlink's Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) is expected to facilitate movement of stablecoins across networks, while its data services provide foreign exchange pricing information for settlement. FairSquareLab contributes the underlying FX settlement engine and dedicated blockchain infrastructure.

The reliance on Swift and ISO 20022 messaging reflects a broader industry trend toward integrating blockchain-based settlement into existing banking infrastructure rather than replacing it entirely. Unlock Blockchain recently reported on SG-FORGE and Swift's successful completion of a MiCA-compliant tokenized bond settlement, demonstrating how traditional financial messaging networks are increasingly being connected to digital asset ecosystems. (Related: SG-FORGE and Swift Complete First MiCA-Compliant Tokenized Bond Settlement via EUR CoinVertible)

The initiative also follows Swift's broader push into tokenized finance. Earlier this year, the organization advanced its blockchain ledger infrastructure for tokenized deposits and outlined plans for live cross-border payment applications, highlighting growing interest among financial institutions in using blockchain technology to improve settlement efficiency.

Growing Institutional Stablecoin Momentum

For South Korean banks, the initiative could provide a pathway to conduct international transactions using won-denominated digital assets rather than relying on intermediary currencies. For European participants, it offers an opportunity to extend the role of the euro into emerging blockchain-based financial infrastructure.

While Project Pangea remains an exploratory framework rather than a production-ready settlement network, it reflects a broader shift among banks and financial infrastructure providers toward integrating regulated stablecoins into mainstream cross-border payment and foreign exchange workflows.

If successful, the initiative could demonstrate how traditional banking networks, stablecoins, and blockchain interoperability standards can work together to support real-time international settlement without requiring financial institutions to abandon the infrastructure and messaging systems they already use today.