South Korean postal service considers blockchain for billing system

The South Korea postal service plans to integrate blockchain technology to its billing service. According to a report by News1 Korea, the new platform will also target the overseas remittance market.

The postal service will partner with two other companies in the blockchain venture. The first will be Coinplug, a South Korean cryptocurrency exchange platform. It will also partner with NHN Corporation, a global IT giant with presence in entertainment, cloud computing, fintech and advertisement.

The report further revealed that the South Korean government will support the initiative with 800 million won ($677,000). The project will fall under the Ministry of Science and ICT, relying on NHN’s fintech and cloud technology as well as Coinplug’s blockchain expertise.

The new system will still be as simple to use as the existing systems. Users will scan QR codes to make their payments, only that with the new system, the data will be stored on the blockchain. It will also enable blockchain identification, with the technology being provided by Coinplug.

The pilot project will be conducted in Naju, a city in the southwest of the country. Naju was crowned the ‘Innovative City’ in 2007 and has continued to become a prominent technology epicenter in the Asian nation. Initially, it will target small restaurants and cafes, with plans to extend it to public institutions and local businesses in the future.

The postal service also intends to integrate the blockchain-based system with Seoul’s ZeroPay payment system. ZeroPay relies on the scanning of QR codes and enables small business owners to have their payments processed at zero fees.

Moreover, the new payment system will target the overseas remittance industry. However, this will depend on its success locally. In 2017, the country remitted over $5.9 billion, with China receiving the bulk of it at $4.1 billion.

South Korea has been one of the leaders in the crypto and blockchain revolution. Last month, the country’s Ministry of ICT announced that it would run a follow-up study group for blockchain regulations. The group’s aim will be to assist in the drafting of blockchain regulations. The country’s financial industry regulator also added 9 blockchain firms to its latest regulatory sandbox. This will allow them to develop their technologies and products under a relaxed compliance regime.