What Hyundai learned from its stablecoin test drive

• Key insights: Hyundai Motor is exploring whether stablecoins can be used as the backbone of its global treasury infrastructure following two proof-of-concept transactions that used stablecoins to move funds between subsidiaries in the U.S. and Mexico without a bank.  
• What's at stake: The transactions took an average of seven minutes to complete, compared with three to four hours it usually takes with a traditional interbank settlement. 
• Forward look: Following the pilots, the South Korean automaker will test to see if it can integrate stablecoins into its operating model at scale. 

Hyundai Card, the credit card subsidiary of South Korean auto manufacturer Hyundai Motor, is testing if stablecoins can be used as the backbone of its global treasury infrastructure. 

The test comes on the heels of two proof-of-concept transactions completed over the summer that saw Hyundai move funds between subsidiaries in the U.S. and Mexico without a bank. Hyundai moved $20,000 between the two entities after converting it into USDT. Once the funds arrived in Mexico, they were converted back to U.S. dollars. The transactions took an average of seven minutes to complete, compared with three to four hours it usually takes with a traditional interbank settlement. 

"We wanted to test one very simple thing: Can stablecoins move corporate funds cross-borders in a real business environment?" Heejung Nam, VP, head of the payment business division at Hyundai Card, said at the Avalanche Summit in New York on Wednesday. 

"Hyundai Motor Group operates globally, so we have significant costs for payment transactions between our affiliates," Nam said. "We operate across many countries, many currencies, and many banking systems. That means we always have our liquidity sitting in different places. But moving that liquidity requires time, requires cost, requires a lot of personal effort." Hyundai has subsidiaries in more than 28 countries, including the U.S., India, Brazil, Europe, Turkey, Vietnam and Indonesia. 

Hyundai Card completed two transactions, one during banking hours, and one outside of banking hours. Blockchain company Avalanche and blockchain-based payments infrastructure company Axiym were also involved in the pilot. 

The benefits of using stablecoins extend beyond faster settlement, Nam said. Stablecoins also can help the carmaker reduce idle liquidity, improve cash visibility and make working capital more efficient. 

"That's why we are looking to see if stablecoins can make the next generation of our global treasury infrastructure," Nam said. 

Large corporations have recently been testing stablecoins and tokenized deposits to help move funds across borders more efficiently and reduce its need for prefunding pools. Visa in October 2025 opened Visa Direct to stablecoins with that use case in mind. 

"Today's liquidity model is frequently fragmented across payment channels, requiring institutions to position balances and manage intraday needs to avoid payment delays," KPMG said, noting that for banks, stablecoins highlight "a critical risk" that transactions and customer touch points can move outside traditional banking channels. 

Hyundai Card also completed a stablecoin pilot in Europe with Visa and Circle to test remittances in local currencies outside of the U.S. dollar to evaluate cost efficiency when currency conversion is involved. 

Next, the company will be tasked with proving that the entire operating model works at scale.

"Sending money is only part of the process," Nam said. "We have a lot of internal considerations," including accounting, tax, legal, compliance and internal approval authorizations.

"We [need] a deeper and automated integration with the ERP system," Nam said.