KB Kookmin Card, one of South Korea's largest credit card companies, announced Tuesday that it will build a hybrid stablecoin payment model with Avalanche.

This builds on KB's January announcement that it had filed a patent application covering a hybrid payment system that links existing credit cards to digital wallets, allowing customers to use both stablecoins and credit on their cards.

The card company's latest release stated that it will design the card payment model on a public blockchain alongside Avalanche. Moreover, KB is collaborating with digital asset infrastructure firm OpenAsset to develop a comprehensive stablecoin system for top-ups, payments, and settlement, it said.

KB's hybrid stablecoin payment system aims to lower the barrier to entry for stablecoins and digital assets by preserving the familiar user experience of credit cards and associated benefits such as rewards. 

According to the firm's earlier release, the card would automatically prioritize stablecoin balances in the digital wallet linked to the credit card. When the stablecoin balance is insufficient, the remaining sum would be charged to the credit card.

KB's efforts align with South Korea's ongoing moves to establish a stablecoin market pegged to its own currency, the Korean won. Set forth by President Lee Jae-myung in a bid to protect monetary sovereignty in the age of digital finance, a regulatory framework for stablecoins is expected to arrive in a larger bill — the Digital Asset Basic Act — this year.

As legislators draft the bill, major banks, fintech firms, and payment providers are preparing to launch stablecoin products upon regulatory approval.