Blockchain gaming company Wemade is spearheading the establishment of a Korean won-based stablecoin ecosystem with the formation of the Global Alliance for KRW Stablecoins (GAKS). Chainalysis, CertiK, and SentBe have joined as founding partners in this initiative.
Wemade announced that the alliance will provide support for StableNet, a dedicated mainnet designed for Korean won-backed stablecoins. The project emphasizes publicly released code and a consortium model intended to align with institutional and regulatory requirements.
Under the terms of the partnership, Chainalysis will integrate its threat-detection and real-time monitoring capabilities. CertiK will be responsible for node validation and security audits.
Money transfer company SentBe will contribute its licensed remittance infrastructure, which spans 174 countries. This contribution is crucial for enabling the KRW stablecoin initiative to operate within South Korea’s regulated digital asset environment.
This launch represents a significant effort by Wemade to re-establish itself as a long-term infrastructure provider. This comes after a period marked by setbacks, including token delistings and a bridge hack that impacted investor confidence.
Wemade's Challenging Journey and Stablecoin Strategy
Wemade's strategic move into stablecoin infrastructure follows a challenging seven-year period of growth. The company evolved from a traditional gaming studio into one of South Korea's most ambitious blockchain development entities.
The company initiated its blockchain division in 2018, expanding it from a small team of four employees to an operation of 200 individuals. However, this rapid expansion encountered difficulties due to the evolving regulatory landscape in South Korea, which led to the company restricting its play-to-earn (P2E) offerings to international markets.
A significant portion of the challenges faced by Wemade revolved around its native WEMIX token. In 2022, South Korean exchanges delisted the asset, citing discrepancies between its reported and actual supply. This action resulted in a substantial price decrease of over 70% for the token.
The WEMIX token experienced another significant setback in 2024 when a bridge exploit led to losses amounting to 9 billion won, approximately $6 million. The company's delayed disclosure of this incident attracted considerable scrutiny and further eroded investor trust, leading to a second wave of token delistings.
The pivot towards stablecoin infrastructure represents Wemade's latest attempt to reshape its public image and redirect its technology towards a more compliant and infrastructure-centric application.
In a report by The Korea Times, the company stated that it is developing a KRW-focused stablecoin mainnet without intending to act as the stablecoin issuer itself. Wemade is positioning itself as a technology partner and consortium builder for other South Korean companies.
South Korea's Regulatory Environment Post-Terra Collapse
The collapse of Terra in 2022 continues to influence South Korea's digital asset policy. Lawmakers and regulators remain particularly cautious regarding the risks associated with stablecoins.
Since 2022, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Bank of Korea (BoK) have adopted firm stances. They are advocating for more stringent rules concerning liquidity, oversight, and disclosure as they develop a forthcoming stablecoin framework focused on risk containment.
The central bank has also expressed support for granting banks a primary role in stablecoin issuance. This approach is intended to help mitigate potential risks to financial and foreign exchange stability.
The Bank of Korea has warned that permitting non-banking institutions to lead stablecoin issuance could potentially undermine existing regulatory structures.