Key Highlights
- Chainlink launched Project Pangea with over 50 Korean and European financial institutions.
- The initiative focuses on real-time cross-border FX settlement using regulated stablecoins.
- The project aims to enable atomic Payment-versus-Payment (PvP) swaps between EUR and KRW stablecoins.
Chainlink, a decentralized oracle network, along with Korean and European banking groups, today launched Project Pangea, a collaborative initiative aimed at developing real-time, stablecoin-based cross-border foreign exchange settlement.
According to the official release, the project brings together more than 50 financial institutions, including a coalition of Korean banks led by Shinhan Bank, JB Bank, and Kbank through UniKA (Unified Korea Alliance) and FairSquareLab, as well as Qivalis, a consortium representing 37 European banks. The effort focuses on enabling atomic Payment-versus-Payment (PvP) swaps between regulated EUR and KRW stablecoins.
The global foreign exchange market handles over $9.6 trillion in daily volume, yet cross-border transactions often face delays due to intermediary currency conversions and legacy settlement processes. Project Pangea seeks to address these frictions by exploring onchain mechanisms for instant (T+0) settlement using existing banking infrastructure.
The initiative uses Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) for transferring stablecoins between networks, Chainlink Data Streams for real-time foreign exchange market data, and the Chainlink Runtime Environment (CRE) to connect traditional banking systems with blockchain networks. ISO 20022 messaging standards and Swift infrastructure are integrated to allow banks to interact through familiar systems.
How Project Pangea plans to modernize FX settlement
A key component of the project is FairSquareLab’s onchain FX settlement technology and the dedicated Pangea L1 blockchain. The settlement layer is designed to execute FX swaps at oracle-based market rates with mechanisms to maintain liquidity and minimize slippage.
The architecture separates responsibilities into three layers: the banking layer (Swift/ISO 20022), the connectivity layer (Chainlink services), and the settlement layer (smart contracts on Ethereum, Polygon, and the Pangea L1).
Project Pangea is structured as a task force involving a steering committee of five core entities and multiple participating commercial banks. The goal is to test and develop direct atomic swaps between compliant fiat-referenced digital assets, potentially reducing settlement times and capital inefficiencies in cross-border transactions.
Chainlink Labs emphasized that enterprise revenue and service fees generated through the project would be converted into LINK tokens and held in the Chainlink Reserve. However, the project remains in its early stages as a collaborative exploration rather than a fully operational system.
Expanding into stablecoin infrastructure
In a separate development, Chainlink recently enabled KRWQ, a Korean won-backed stablecoin developed by IQ and Frax Finance, to become the first KRW stablecoin with automated, real-time reserve verification.
Through the integration of Chainlink Proof of Reserve and Data Streams, KRWQ now provides continuous, on-chain proof of its off-chain reserves. This replaces delayed manual reports with transparent, automated verification that users and developers can check at any time.
Chainlink said the integration strengthens trust in KRWQ by ensuring its backing can be independently verified in real time, reducing counterparty risk and supporting liquidity in DeFi applications.
Another example of bridging blockchain tool to TradFi
Project Pangea highlights the gradual integration of blockchain tools into traditional finance rather than a rapid transformation.
While the project could potentially improve settlement speed and reduce friction if successful, it remains in its early collaborative phase. Its long-term impact will depend on technical performance, regulatory clarity, cost efficiency compared to existing systems, and actual adoption by participating institutions.
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