Hashed launches Maroo, a Layer1 blockchain concept for the Korean won stablecoin economy

Odaily Planet Daily News: Cryptocurrency venture capital firm Hashed’s subsidiary Hashed Open Finance has released a lightweight white paper proposing a new Layer1 blockchain concept called Maroo, aimed at serving the Korean Won (KRW) stablecoin economy.

Maroo is designed as a “sovereign blockchain” that balances the openness of public chains with financial regulatory compliance, emphasizing features such as auditability and privacy protection. Network transaction fees will be paid in KRW stablecoins to reduce volatility and increase user participation. Hashed Open Finance points out that existing public chains (like Ethereum) struggle to implement anti-money laundering (AML) and KYC mechanisms at the network level, and their highly transparent design may expose sensitive personal and corporate information.

To address this, Maroo introduces a “dual-track” architecture: an “open path” that allows free creation of wallets and transactions, and a “compliant path” that introduces identity verification and restrictions based on transaction scale or scenario. Additionally, its programmable compliance layer (PCL) can automatically perform quota and sanctions reviews during transactions and support updates in response to regulatory changes; a verifiable privacy framework enables selective disclosure of information under legal procedures. Furthermore, Maroo reserves AI integration capabilities for authenticating AI agents, managing their permissions, and setting expenditure limits.

Hashed CEO Simon Kim stated that stablecoins are becoming a vital part of global financial infrastructure. Maroo aims to explore a technically open path that complies with Korean regulations, respecting the local environment, and providing a testing ground for next-generation financial services for banks, financial institutions, and fintech companies.

The report notes that this plan aligns with South Korea’s push for KRW stablecoin legislation. Relevant rules are expected to be incorporated into the ongoing drafting of the “Basic Law on Digital Assets” and may be finalized in the first quarter of this year. (The Block)