Expert: Blockchain Could Stop a Repeat of Samsung Securities Crisis

Oh Jung-geun, the chairman of the Korea Finance ICT Convergence Association, has implored South Korean securities companies to adopt blockchain platforms to avoid a repeat of the crisis currently engulfing Samsung Securities.

A Samsung Securities administrative error saw the company mistakenly hand out 2.8 billion shares in the company to its share-holding employees. The company had intended to give employees bonuses worth 2.8 billion Korean won (USD 10 per share), but instead gave out 2.8 billion shares (worth 39,800 won, or USD 37, each). The situation was further complicated when many of the employees decided to cash in on the error, selling off some 5 million shares.

Speaking to media outlet BBS News, Oh said that using blockchain platforms would allow companies like Samsung Securities to monitor their stocks and transactions in real-time. Currently, securities firms in South Korea use what Oh called “outdated depository systems,” which require a full-day delay for transactions to clear.

Oh said, “Right now, companies cannot verify their transactions until they are complete – after a full day has passed. But a blockchain platform could allow for instantaneous transfers, and could let you check every detail of a transaction as it happens. The need for blockchain application in this field has become quite urgent.”