A City in South Korea is Expanding Its Blockchain Payment Program

A major satellite city in South Korea, Seongnam, is preparing to expand its existing blockchain-powered payment program by issuing new digital gift certificates.

According to Kyunghyang Shinmun, the city’s Blockchain infrastructure will rely on a mobile app named Chak app. This app will be built by the Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation, or KOMSCO. Seongnam’s project hopes to make it easier for elderly and middle-aged residents to utilize the city’s existing Blockchain technology. They also hope to strengthen the use of contactless payments during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Local media outlets said that three digital gift certificate types – representing cash, check cards, and mobile cards – can be used at 45,000 card merchant locations across the city. 

Seongnam is well known for its Pangyo Tech Valley — an IT complex that serves as the headquarters for many of the country’s tech giants, such as Kakao Group, SK Telecom, AhnLabs, Nexon, among others.

The operator behind Seongnam’s project previously praised the record breaking profits brought in by its stablecoin and blockchain projects in 2020.

KEB Hana Bank, one of the biggest commercial banks in South Korea, reached an agreement on August 9 with the state-backed highway operator, the Korea Expressway Corporation, to bring blockchain-based toll payments to the nation’s highways.