Woori Bank Enters Crypto-Paid Airfare Settlement Market, First Among Korea’s Big Five Lenders

Source

Korea Economic Daily

Summary

Woori Bank said it has become the first among South Korea’s five major commercial banks to enter the settlement market for airline ticket payments made with cryptocurrency, Bitcoin and other virtual assets.
Woori Bank said it is expanding its airline ticket settlement operations based on Woori Safe Settlement, a digital wallet service, and a waiver of settlement fees.
Woori Bank said growing airline ticket payment volume led it to raise its annual transaction target from $50.8 million to more than $72.5 million.

Forecast Trend Report by Period

Using Its Woori Safe Settlement Infrastructure

Offering a Digital Wallet Service to Airlines

Woori Bank has become the first of South Korea’s five major commercial banks to enter the market for settling airline ticket purchases made with cryptocurrencies. Under the model, airlines would accept payment for tickets in Bitcoin and other digital assets, while Woori Bank would handle settlement.

Financial industry officials said on May 11 that Woori Bank has moved into the crypto-based airfare settlement business through its in-house platform, Woori Safe Settlement. The bank has begun informing airlines interested in using the platform that it can process settlement if they adopt virtual assets and other means as payment options for airline tickets. It is the first among South Korea’s five major commercial banks to complete settlement-business registration and enter the airfare settlement market.

A broader rollout of digital wallet services in the airline market could make deeply discounted airfares more widely available to consumers. In South Korea, a separate company is needed to handle financial processing between ticket payment and the actual issuance of a ticket. Airline industry officials say that if Woori Safe Settlement takes charge of settlement between payment and ticketing, carriers can sell tickets at unusually low prices. Eastar Jet has been using the service to run a 98% discount promotion on air tickets since February 2025.

After Eastar Jet, Woori Bank also took on part of the settlement work for AirAsia and Aero K. It has also signed agreements to process settlement for NOL Universe, which accounts for about 30% of South Korea’s online travel agency market, and LG Uplus.

Beyond aviation, Woori Bank is expanding the business to four South Korean pharmaceutical companies and 21 drug wholesalers. It also plans to provide Woori Safe Settlement services for To the Moon, the bank’s own performance ticketing platform, which is set to launch a dedicated app soon.

Woori Safe Settlement does not charge settlement fees. That is because Woori Bank Chief Executive Officer Jeong Jin-wan directed the bank to waive fees for businesses serving small and medium-sized enterprises, including small travel agencies, as part of its inclusive-finance push. The bank aims to earn returns by managing client funds while they remain on deposit. Woori Bank processed 86,000 settlement transactions in the first four months of this year, surpassing its total for all of last year. It also raised its annual transaction target to more than $72.5 million from $50.8 million.

Oh Yu-rim, Hankyung.com reporter, our@hankyung.com