BTQ chosen for iM Bank KRW stablecoin post-quantum security
BTQ Technologies will embed NIST-aligned post-quantum signatures into iM Bank’s KRW stablecoin pilot on the Kaia mainnet with Finger Inc.
Vancouver-listed BTQ Technologies announced Wednesday it will deploy its Quantum Secure Stablecoin Settlement Network across iM Bank’s stablecoin pilot infrastructure. The work will embed post-quantum cryptography into a regulated Korean won (KRW) stablecoin issued on the Kaia mainnet in partnership with local vendor Finger Inc.
The project pairs existing ECDSA keys with NIST-aligned post-quantum signatures such as ML-DSA. That design lets iM Bank maintain current operations while adding cryptographic algorithms intended to resist future quantum attacks. Newton, BTQ’s chief executive officer, noted: “Post-quantum migration requires more than a cryptographic upgrade. It requires coordination across infrastructure, implementation, and institutional stakeholders.”
BTQ described the pilot as a functional proof-of-concept. The tests will include real-time reconciliation between bank reserves and on-chain supply, verification of a standardized smart contract design, and trials of connectivity for overseas distribution. BTQ will provide both technology and strategic advisory support to iM Bank and Finger during the pilot.
Kaia is a Layer 1 network formed from the merger of Klaytn and Finschia. Connecting the stablecoin to Kaia links the pilot to digital platforms associated with Kakao and LINE. Klaytn previously participated in the Bank of Korea’s central bank digital currency pilot, Project Hangang.
The project coincides with plans by eight South Korean banks to form a joint venture to issue a KRW stablecoin and with expected legislation to govern a regulated digital-won market. A banking industry official warned: “There is a shared sense of crisis that if things continue this way, foreign dollar coins could dominate the domestic market. It is time to secure independence and competitiveness of the domestic financial system at the same time through a Won-based digital currency.”
BTQ has listed Danal and Finger as early participants in its Quantum Secure Stablecoin Settlement Network in Korea. The company’s QSSN design was referenced in the U.S. Post-Quantum Financial Infrastructure Framework as a model for stablecoin issuance and administrative key management.
Industry participants are treating the “harvest-now, decrypt-later” risk — where encrypted data collected today could be decrypted by future quantum computers — as an operational concern. The pilot will be evaluated for potential commercial issuance under QuINSA guidelines.
