By Cynthia Kim and Heekyong Yang
SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korean fintech unicorn Toss plans to launch its “all-in-one” finance app in Australia this year and expand to other markets, and aims to issue a won-based stablecoin once regulations allow, said founder and CEO Lee Seung-gun.
Toss has shown that a startup can take on big banks and brokers, said the dentist-turned-entrepreneur, who predicts overseas growth to eventually outpace growth at home.
“We proved in Korea that a startup can compete head-on with entrenched players,” Lee said in an interview on Tuesday. “A similar model can work globally, especially in countries where users juggle multiple bank accounts or fintech apps. We want to bring them into one seamless experience.”
Toss has attracted more than 30 million users in South Korea since its founding in 2015, Lee said. Its first major overseas push will be in Australia, where a fragmented banking system and open-banking rules allow room for a one-stop platform, he said.
The fintech has set up an Australian unit which plans to start core banking and payments services by year-end. It is reviewing other territories, with Singapore serving mainly as a regional hub rather than retail market, Lee said.
“Our long-term vision is not another financial holding company, but a global internet company built on financial services,” he said.
Speculation about a U.S. listing has followed Toss since it reached a $7 billion valuation in a funding round in 2022. Lee declined to comment on fundraising targets, citing regulations, but said market conditions would decide whether Toss would list.
Reuters reported in July that Toss aims to list in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2026 with a valuation of more than $10 billion. Some market watchers said the valuation could exceed $15 billion which would make the IPO the biggest in the U.S. by a South Korean company since 2021.
The unicorn – a startup valued at over $1 billion – has been approached by global funds that view it as one of few fintechs to deliver on the super app concept, Lee said without commenting on potential listing plans.
At home, Toss is in a “perfect position” to lead in the creation of a digitally native form of the Korean won, Lee said, as the government works to introduce legislation to ensure stringent oversight and consumer protection.
“We will issue and distribute won-based stablecoin – that I can say for sure,” Lee said. A stablecoin is a digital currency the value of which is linked to another asset such as the won.
Toss is in regular discussion with authorities to prepare the infrastructure needed, Lee said.
(Reporting by Cynthia Kim and Heekyong Yang; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
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